Life with a Goddess
by ExiXIII
Summary: Leo fulfills his oath and comes back for Calypso. With the help of the gods, he will try to free Calypso from her curse and show her a new life in the Mortal World.
1. The Gods Have Drawn the Last Straw

**Okay guys, this is my second FanFic and once again, it's about LEO AND CALYPSO (I ship them :D)**

**This is going to be a multi-chapter fanfic! (YAAAY!)**

_ExiXIII (Castor): _**You've held them long enough, I think.**

_ExiXIII (Pollux): _**Maybe you're right. Fine, I'll shut up.**

_ExiXIII (Castor): _**Good. To the readers, don't forget to leave some reviews!**

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**CHAPTER I: "The Gods Have Drawn the Last Straw"**

Calypso was tending to the plants in her garden: pulling up weeds, loosening the dirt with her trowel and disposing of the dead leaves, another average day in Ogygia, the cursed island-prison that is nowhere and everywhere at the same time. The gods have put her here as a punishment for siding with the Titans in the First Titan War. She despised them for this.

She was alone in the island, though she has a visitor every now and then. The gods often visit her (Hephaestus, usually), and occasionally, a demigod hero is washed up to the shores of her island.

The Fates send her a hero, a hero that can never stay, a hero that she can support but cannot assist, a hero that she cannot help but fall head-over-heels for. Then, just when she falls in love with them, the Fates tear him away from her, leaving her heartbroken and devastated.

This was the cruelty of her curse.

She was lost in thought while working in her garden, until she saw a fireball from the sky plummeting toward her island and it crashed with a loud boom. She stopped what she was doing and ran to the beach to check it out.

She was shocked by what she saw. There was a huge crater in the beach where her dining table was supposed to be. She didn't even use the table. It was designed to fit about twelve people even though there was only one (sometimes two,) people on the island. Did the gods put it there to remind her of her loneliness? Either way, she was still infuriated because she lost a perfectly nice piece of furniture.

_Now you destroy my belongings? Is it not bad enough that you imprison me in this cursed island?_ She silently cursed the gods.

"Sphere!" A male voice exclaimed with delight, and then her attention became fixated on the source. "Come to papa!"

She found the speaker cradling a bronze sphere at the bottom of the crater. He was a scrawny boy with olive-toned skin, pointy ears and dark, curly hair. His eyes looked energetic as if he was always on a sugar rush. His clothes were half-burnt and soot was all over his body, otherwise, he looked fine and unharmed, even if he fell from the sky in flames.

This scrawny little boy destroyed her table and left a large crater in her beach. She was filled with so much rage that she cannot help but yell at him in anger. "What are you _doing?_ You blew up my dining table!"

That seemed to get his attention. "Oh, I'm sorry!" he responded with a sarcastic tone. "I just fell from the sky. I constructed a helicopter in midair, burst into flames halfway down, crash landed and barely survived. But by all means – let's talk about your dining table!"

He picked up a half-melted goblet. It was once an intricately decorated goblet, until it was consumed by the burning wreckage of a "helicopter" as he had called it. "Who puts a dining table on the beach where innocent demigods can crash into it? Who does that?"

His disrespectful tone enraged her even more. Doesn't he know who he was talking to and what she can do to him? She clenched her fists, ready to punch his smug little face until he looked like his face had been run over by a chariot. She held herself back and instead shouted at the sky.

"REALLY? You want to make my curse even worse?" She was sure that the gods were laughing at this ridiculous practical joke. "Zeus! Hephaestus! Hermes! Have you no shame?"

"Uh…" The boy said. He looked at her as if she had lost her mind. "I doubt they're listening. You know, the whole split personality thing-"

Split Personality thing? What was he talking about? She decided to ignore the thought and continued to shout at the sky. "Show yourself! It's not bad enough that I am exiled? It's not bad enough you take away the few good heroes I'm allowed to meet? You think it's funny to send me this – this charbroiled runt of a boy to ruin my tranquility?" She tried to sound as insulting as possible. "This is NOT FUNNY! Take him _back!_"

No response. The gods must have sent him to pester her - that must be it. She could swear that in Olympus, they are mocking her and laughing at her.

"Hey, Sunshine,"Sunshine? _SUNSHINE?! _Nobody calls Calypso, daughter of Atlas, Sunshine. The way he talks to her is so irritating and disrespectful that she just wants to strangle that scrawny runt until he dies. "I'm right here you know." He looked a little hurt, not that she cared.

"Do _not_ call me Sunshine!" _You have no idea of what I am capable of doing to you, _she wanted to add but didn't. "Get out of that hole and come with me _now_ so I can get you off my island."

She turned to look at the crater. It used to be a calm, beautiful beach until he came along. "This was a pristine beach! Look at it now."

"Yeah, my bad, I should've crashed on one of the other islands. Oh wait – there aren't any!" His tone of voice irritated her even more.

She stopped walking as soon as they'd arrived to their destination. The boy ran into her. "Gah!" she turned to grab his arms to keep him from falling into the water. His arms were strong for such a scrawny kid, as if he had been working in the forges for most of his life. She brushed that thought aside.

She was holding on to his arms and stared at his eyes until she realized it and pushed him away. "All right. This spot is good. Now tell me you want to leave."

"What?" He had a confused look on his face.

"Do you want to leave? Surely you've got somewhere to go!" _Like every other hero who came to this island,_ she thought.

"Uh… yeah. My friends are in trouble. I need to get back to my ship and–"

"Fine. Just say, _I want to leave Ogygia._"

"Uh, okay. I want to leave – whatever you said."

Was he stupid? Now, she's more irritated than before. "Oh-gee-gee-ah."

"I want to leave Oh-gee-gee-ah."

She was relieved to finally have this pest leave her island. "Good. In a moment, a magical raft will appear. It will take you wherever you need to go."

"Who _are_ you?" He inquired, genuine curiosity in his voice.

She was about to say _I am Calypso, daughter of Atlas. Be thankful that I didn't kill you earlier today. _Instead, she said "It doesn't matter. You'll be gone soon. You're obviously a mistake." She might have been a bit too harsh since the boy had a pained expression on his face. Why should she care?

She waited for the raft to appear. "Any moment now…" Nothing came.

"Maybe it got stuck in traffic." The boy said.

"This is wrong." _This is UNACCEPTABLE! _"This is completely wrong!"

"So… plan B?" he asked. "You got a phone or–"

"Agh!" she exclaimed with exasperation. _This cannot be. Why did the raft not come? The gods have drawn the last straw. This is the last insult I will take. This is where I draw the line! _She cursed the gods in her mind as she stormed inland to go back to her garden and at least calm herself a bit.

She left him in the beach without looking back. She could hear him following behind. "When will this end?" She said with a sigh as she sprinted along the footpath.

**-END OF CHAPTER I-**

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_ExiXIII (Pollux): _**You see that? It can't possibly end there! No way, no how!**

_ExiXIII (Castor): _**Yes, there are many more to come. Exi's writing the next chapters as we speak!**

_ExiXIII (Pollux): _**Can we give them a hint as to what the next chapter will be about?**

_ExiXIII (Castor): _**No.**

_ExiXIII (Pollux): _**They've (probably) read "The House of Hades" already! Just one little spoiler….**

_ExiXIII (Castor): _**No. Keep your mouth shut, you impossible little…**

_ExiXIII (Pollux): _**PLEASE? Don't be such a stick in the mud.**

_ExiXIII (Castor): _**I. SAID. NO.**

**(I'm a GEMINI so I thought that adding two characters who are also me to speak for me was a fun idea. :P) Wait for the next chapter! (Which should be coming soon… hehehe)**


	2. A Painful Reminder

_The Librarian: _**I. NEED. MORE.**

_Gaea: _**NEED is an overused word.**

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_ExiXIII: _**Okay you guys, CHAPTER II! (Once again, it is spoken from Calypso's point of view. So will the next chapter. And the next one after that.)**

_Pollux and Castor: _**READ ON AND DON'T FORGET TO WRITE SOME REVIEWS!**

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**CHAPTER II: "A Painful Reminder"**

The footpath led into a garden and ended in a crystalline cave that was cut into the side of a grassy hill. This was where Calypso's home was.

The garden was a beautiful sight to behold, there was an orchard and a vineyard on the western side of the garden, the wide assortment of fresh fruits was emanating a wonderful aroma. On the eastern side of the garden was a fountain with bronze satyrs that spewed water into a central bowl.

The atmosphere carried the scents of juniper, jasmine and various other herbs that grew in and around the garden. The calm, tranquil ambience of this place has always relieved Calypso's stress.

Not this time.

"Do you expect me to fall in love with him, only so you can take him away from me and see me in sorrow again?" she muttered as she sobbed, her tears rolling down her cheeks and falling to the ground. "Is this your cruel idea for amusement?" She quietly cursed the gods in Ancient Greek as she was furiously stabbing the dirt with her trowel.

"Holy Hephaestus," the boy said in amazement, obviously impressed. The expression he had used amused her by a little bit.

He moved to one side so she could see him out of the corner of her eye. She decided to just ignore him.

"I think you've punished that dirt enough." The boy said.

She looked up from what she was doing and turned to look at him. "Just go away." She muttered her voice still shaky from crying. _Go away before I…_

His expression softened when he noticed that she had been crying. "You're crying." He said, his voice sympathetic. The mischief and sarcasm in his tone was gone.

_I don't need your sympathy._ She wanted to say to him, but she didn't because if she did, he might start annoying her again.

"None of your business." She muttered and her gaze dropped to the ground, her attention fixated on her tears as if she suddenly found them interesting. "It's a big island." She continued. "Just… find your own place." She didn't want to see him. She didn't want him to see her like this. He might think that she was weak. She gestured toward the south. "Go that way, maybe."

"So, no magic raft," he said, stating the obvious, which just irritated her even more. The raft should have come but it didn't Maybe in Olympus, the gods were mocking her. "No other way off the island?"

"Apparently not!" She snapped. She thought to herself: _The gods are mocking me._

"What am I supposed to do then? Sit in the sand dunes until I die?"

Actually that sounded like a good idea. "That would be fine…" she threw down her trowel in anger, remembering that mortals do not age and die in Ogygia. "Except I suppose he _can't _die here, can he?" She cursed at the sky. "Zeus! This is not funny!"

"Hold up," he said as his head turned left and right as if he was taking in his surroundings. "I'm going to need some information here. You don't want me in your face, that's cool. I don't want to be here either." _The feeling's mutual_, she said in her mind.

"But I'm not going to die in a corner." He continued. "I have to get off this island. There's got to be a way. Every problem has a fix.

He said that as if leaving would be easy. She laughed bitterly, knowing that without the magic raft that was _supposed_ to appear in the shore, there was no way off this cursed island. "You haven't lived very long, if you still believe that."

"You said something about a curse," he prompted.

_Do _not _remind me of my curse! _She wanted to scream at him and throw her trowel at him as if it was a throwing knife. She flexed her fingers repeatedly in an attempt to calm herself, even by at least a little bit. Finally, she said with an exhausted sigh, "Yes. I cannot leave Ogygia. My father, Atlas, fought against the gods, and I supported him." She wanted to scream to the heavens, _Why? Is it wrong to side with your family?_

"Atlas," he began, a perplexed look on his face. "As in _Titan_ Atlas?"

_Duh. Who else? _Calypso just rolled her eyes.

"Yes, you impossible little…" she held back what she was about to say.

"I was imprisoned here, where I can cause the Olympians no trouble. About a year ago, after the Second Titan War, the gods vowed to forgive their enemies and offer amnesty." _They must have forgotten about their promise, or they just choose to ignore me. _The gods are great liars and are often forgetful. She possessed a deep hatred for them because of this. "Supposedly Percy made them promise–"

"Percy," the boy cut her off mid-sentence "Percy Jackson?"

The mention of his name brought memories of her time with Percy streaming through her mind. She remembered the pain and heartbreak that she felt when he left. She closed her eyes, willing herself not to cry in front of him but she cannot hold her sorrow any longer. She felt a tear trickle down her cheek.

"Percy came here," he said.

"I-I thought I would be released. I dared to hope… but I am still here." She said quietly, her voice tinged with pain and sadness. _Silly Calypso, hoping for something that can never be._

When she turned to look at him, his brow was furrowed like he was trying to remember something. "You're that lady," he said as if he finally realized who she was. "The one who was named after Carribean music."

That was enough to snap her out of her sadness. _Carribean music? The mortals use my name for their musical entertainment? Now even the mortals mock me? _"Carribean music." She said with an intimidating tone.

"Yeah. Reggae?" He shook his head. "Merengue? Hold on, I'll get it."

"Calypso!" He said as he snapped his fingers. "But Percy said you were awesome." He continued. "He said you were all sweet and helpful, not, um…"

_Not what? _"Yes?" she said with a low growl as she stood up.

"Uh, nothing."

"Would you be _sweet, _if the gods forget their promise to let you go?" _If they torment you and insult you and mock you to no end? _"Would you be sweet if they _laughed _at you by sending another hero, but a hero who looked like-like _you?_"

"Was that a trick question?" He said with sarcasm.

_That's _it_! I've had it! _"_Di Immortales!"_ She exclaimed as she stormed toward her cave trying to get away from _him._

"Hey!" She heard him call out and ran after her.

"Doesn't he know how to take a hit?" She muttered as she slid the white silk curtain that covered the entrance to her cave.

When the boy looked inside, there was a look of amazement and surprise on his face. His eyes darted around, taking in every detail of the cave and then his attention was focused on her invisible servants. _"Oh, right, mortals can't see them." _She thought to herself.

Even his presence was annoying to her. She just scowled at him, trying to make him leave.

"So…" he said as he cleared his throat. "I get why you're angry. You probably never want to see another demigod again. I guess that didn't sit right when, uh, Percy left you-"

_Don't rub it in. Don't make it any worse. Please._

"He was only the latest," she growled, remembering the other demigods who came before him. She scowled at the thought. "Before him, it was that pirate Drake. And before him Odysseus. They were all the same! The gods send me the greatest heroes, the ones I cannot help but…"

"You fall in love with them." He finished for her. "And then they leave you."

The pain of seeing them leave to reunite with their wives or girlfriends surfaced. She tried to keep herself from bursting into tears. "That is my curse. I had hoped to be free from it now, but here I am, still stuck on Ogygia after three thousand years."

"Three thousand. Uh, you look good for three thousand."

_Was that meant as an insult? Is he reminding me of how long she had been imprisoned in this lonely island? _She screamed aloud in her mind.

"And now… the worst insult of all. The gods mock me by sending _you._"

"Fine." He said, his voice slightly hinted with anger. "I'll leave you alone. I'll build something myself and get off this stupid island without your help."

_Don't you realize that it's hopeless? _She wanted to say to him. Instead, she just shook her head. "You don't understand, do you? The gods are laughing at the both of us. If the raft will not appear, that means they've closed Ogygia. You're stuck here the same as me. You can never leave."

_The gods have forsaken us._

**-END OF CHAPTER II-**

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_Pollux: _**Whoa, Calypso looks pissed.**

_Castor: _**You're stating the obvious.**

_Pollux: _**I was?**

_Castor: _**Yes. It's written right there, there, over here and over there.**

_Pollux: _**Huh.**

_Castor: _**Anyways, enough of this. Up next: CHAPTER III: "He Might not be all **_**That **_**Bad"**

_Pollux: _**Calypso's finally warming up to Leo!**

_Castor:_**Shut up. It gives me a headache every time you open that mouth of yours.**


	3. He Might Not be all THAT Bad

_Pollux: _**It's time for Chapter III!**

_Castor:_ **Yes, it seems that way, does it not?**

_ExiXIII: _**It took me a long time to finish this chapter, what with school and all. The only reason I finished this is because of you guys, the readers. You are what keep me going because I love you guys!**

_Pollux and Castor: _**Read on!**

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**CHAPTER III: "He Might not be all **_**That**_** Bad"**

Calypso has developed a habit of spying on the boy. His name is Leo Valdez. She became aware of this when she used her magic to look into the past. She thought that if they were prisoners on the same godsforsaken island, she should at least know his name.

Why didn't she just ask him for his name? Even she didn't understand why.

She would sometimes watch Leo from a distance using her magic and a bowl of clean water. She uses this to see anything she wants to see.

During the day, he either tinkers with his sphere or he walks around the beach, tossing nuts and bolts at miniature rainbows that have been formed by the sea spray in an attempt to start an Iris-message. During the night, he would burn the remains of her dining table with his hands – this is how she learned that he is a son of Hephaestus – to make a bonfire. He would then sleep near this fire on a bedroll that he must have pulled from his magical tool belt.

He once walked near her garden, his mouth open as if ready to ask something. She knew what he was going to ask even before he spoke the first syllable. "Time is difficult here." She said flatly. Her answer seemed to disappoint him.

She would sometimes take pity on him. She can't help it; he looked like a homeless child. His clothes were burnt, he was dirty all over and he must have been starving.

She looked over to her loom, which she hadn't used in centuries. She sat down and began to weave the fabric, remembering how nice it was to weave. She didn't even need to fuss about the clothes' dimensions, somehow she just _knew._

When she was done, she had weaved him a white cotton shirt and a white pair of cotton trousers that were enough to fit his scrawny frame perfectly. She then ordered her invisible servants to leave the clothes, a bowl of stew and a goblet of apple cider on the edge of her garden, where he could easily see it. At night, when he was fast asleep, she would go over to the edge of her garden to collect the empty bowl and goblet, something to add to her daily to-do list. Sometimes, she would see that he has unintentionally burned through his clothes, so she would weave him a new set of clothes, another thing to add to her to-do list.

Then there were days where she just wasn't herself. She would either watch him all day through her bowl of magical water or she herself would sneak near his encampment, where she would observe him quietly. Not that she was obsessed with him or anything…

Then there was this time where he poked his head into her cave to see her and how she was doing. She was startled by him and she just lost it for a second. Before she knew it, she was crazily throwing pots at him.

She admitted that she was embarrassed by that.

One day, while she was tending to the plants in her garden, she heard a loud _CLANG_ that sounded like metal ringing against metal. She decided to ignore it in the hopes that whatever Leo was doing would end soon.

The annoying banging continued for two days. He would start early in the morning and end late in the night. The noise would startle her awake, distract her while she was working in her gardens and keep her from sleeping at night.

During the morning of the third day, she was rudely awakened once again. "Agh! That's _it!_ This incessant hammering has to stop!" She exclaimed with an exasperated tone as she stormed toward Leo's encampment. She then remembered that she hadn't brought him any food for a while, so she baked a loaf of bread and harvested some grapes. After that, she headed for the beach.

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Calypso found Leo in a makeshift forge made of clay bricks that he must have baked himself. He was hammering away at a sheet of Celestial Bronze. _Where did he even get that bronze?_ She wondered.

"Smoke and fire," she complained upon arriving, her irritation evident in her voice. "Clanging on metal all day long. You're scaring away the birds!"

"Oh no, not the birds!" He answered with a sarcastic tone.

"What do you hope to accomplish?"

"I'm _hoping_ to get off this island. That is what you want, right?"

_He's nothing if not persistent and headstrong, just like his father._ She thought.

She set down the basket near his bedroll. "You haven't eaten in two days. Take a break and _eat._" She said, trying not to sound concerned.

"Two days?" He said with surprise as he hungrily eyed the basket. "Thanks," he muttered. "I'll uh, try to hammer more quietly."

"Huh." She said in disbelief. But, true to his promise, when she arrived at her garden, the loud metal banging was reduced to a faint _CHINK CHINK CHINK _in the distance.

* * *

"Why do I feel like I'm missing something?" She wondered aloud while she was in the garden a few days after she visited Leo's encampment. Then she realized that the fountain was no longer ticking and spewing water across the rim of the bowl. She also noticed that the curtains were more level and that her shears were sharper than they were before. Have her invisible servants done this for her? If so, then why couldn't have done it sooner? It cannot have been them. It must have been Leo.

He has done something nice for her, now it's time for her to return the favor.

She went over to her loom and began to weave a white shirt, blue denim pants and an army fatigue jacket – clothes that she had seen Leo wearing when she last looked into his past. After she was done weaving, she used her magic to fireproof the clothes so that they won't burn like the other sets of clothes she had made for him.

She wore a red dress – Leo's favorite color, not that it was relevant – and folded Leo's new clothes over her arm and she went to his camp.

He had his back turned to her when she found him. He was so engrossed in his project that he didn't even notice her until she said "I brought you–"

He jumped. "Bronze bulls, girl! Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"I wasn't _sneaking._ I was bringing you these." She showed him the clothes that she had made for him. He had a look of amazement and surprise on his face.

"How?" He asked.

Calypso set down the clothes near his feet. He looked worse than when she first saw him. His hair was mangier and he was thinner than before. She backed away. "I do have a little magic, you know." She explained. "You keep burning through the clothes I give you, so I thought that I would weave something less flammable."

He picked up the denim trousers. "These won't burn?" He asked curiously.

"They are completely fireproof; they'll stay clean and expand to fit you, should you ever become less scrawny."

"Thanks." He sounded impressed. "So… you made an exact replica of my favorite outfit. Did you, like, Google me or something?"

_Google? What does that even mean?_She furrowed her brow in confusion. "I don't know that word." She said.

"You looked me up, almost like you had some interest in me."

"I have an interest in not making you a new set of clothes every other day. I have an interest in your not smelling bad and walking around my island in smoldering rags."

"Oh, yeah." He grinned mischievously. "You're really warming up to me.

_W-What?_ She felt her face heating up. "You are the most insufferable person I have ever met! I was only returning a favor. You fixed my fountain."

"That?" He laughed, as if he had already forgotten about her fountain. "That was no big deal. I don't like it when things don't work right."

She remembered the raft that didn't come. That was not right. She brushed that thought aside.

"And the curtains across the cave entrance?" She prompted.

"The rod wasn't level."

"And my gardening tools?"

"Look, I just sharpened the shears. Cutting vines with a dull blade is dangerous. And the pruners need to be oiled at the hinge and–"

"Oh yeah," she said in the best Leo impression she could do. "You're really warming up to me."

He was speechless. He raised his finger and opened his mouth as if he was going to say something, then he closed his mouth without a word.

Her attention shifted to the bronze plate and sphere that were on his worktable. She pointed at it. "What are you building?" She asked with curiosity.

"Oh." He said, his attention turned to his project. "Uh, it's a seeing device. We found one like this in Rome in the workshop of Archimedes." He explained. "If I can make it work, maybe I can find out what's going on with my friends."

_It's hopeless._ She wanted to tell him but instead, she shook her head. "That's impossible. This island is hidden, cut off from the world by strong magic. Time doesn't even flow the same here."

"Well, you got to have some kind of outside contact." He wondered aloud. "How did you find out that I used to wear an army jacket?"

She tried to find an explanation for his question. "Seeing the past is simple magic." She finally said. "Seeing the present or the future – that is not."

"Yeah, well, watch and learn, Sunshine." He said with confidence. "I just connect the last two wires and–"

The wires sparked and smoked once they were connected, the spark igniting a fire that quickly consumed the sleeve of Leo's shirt. He panicked and pulled his shirt off and threw it to the ground, stomping on the flame in an attempt to extinguish it.

Calypso found this scene hilarious. She was forcing herself to suppress her laughter since she didn't want to hurt his pride.

"Not a word." He warned.

Leo's upper body was streaked with scars that must have been the result of various accidents. Calypso noticed that his arm muscles have risen slightly and that this chest and shoulders have gotten a bit larger and stronger. He was a bit less scrawny than when she first saw him. She then realized she was staring and quickly looked away, flustered.

"Nothing worth commenting on," she said. She didn't want him to get too bigheaded. "If you want that device to work, perhaps you should try a musical invocation." She suggested.

"Right, whenever an engine malfunctions, I like to tap dance around it." He responded sarcastically. "Works every time."

She took a deep breath and began to sing. She infused her voice with magic so that it would awaken the engine. She stopped when she noticed that Leo was staring.

"Any luck?" she asked.

"Uh…" He turned to the bronze plate. "Nothing. Wait…"

The engine hummed to life and an image was projected in the air above it.

* * *

Calypso has witnessed a lot of demonstrations of magic, but she has never seen anything quite like this.

In the shimmering projection, she saw groups of people forming ranks. _They must be demigods as well, _she wondered. There was even a centaur in full battle armor and there were Triremes, catapults and Pegasus Riders ready for battle.

"Your friends?" She asked Leo.

He nodded. "They're preparing for war."

"Against whom?"

"Look." He said as he pointed at the image.

The image now showed an army of Romans. _Romans._ She scowled by just thinking about them.

"I've seen that sign before," Leo said, snapping her out of her thoughts. "That's not far from Camp half-Blood."

Her attention then became focused on two hairy shapes wearing mismatched clothes who were darting around the formation, causing chaos and mass hysteria amongst their ranks.

_Are those… Kerkopes?_

"Those beautiful little trouble-makers! They kept their promise." He exclaimed with a delighted grin on his face.

"Cousins of yours?" she jokingly asked.

"Ha, ha, ha, no, couple of dwarfs I met in Bologna. I sent them to slow down the Romans, and they're doing it."

"But for how long?" She wondered.

The scene shifted. It now showed a thin, blond teenager with a teddy bear and a knife hanging from his belt. _An Augur,_ she guessed. The Augur was holding a long golden pole whose top was covered by canvas. A golden eagle sat on the top of the pole, under the canvas. Leo's face contorted with shock.

"Oh, that's not good," He said, his voice slightly louder than a murmur.

"A Roman standard." She only saw one in her life, and she knew how much devastation it can bring upon the enemy, especially when it was blessed by the gods.

"Yeah. And this one shoots lightning, according to Percy."

_Percy. _She felt a surge of mixed emotions: pain, sadness and anger. She tried to control her feelings.

The image changed again. A girl with dark hair and a purple cloak rode her peanut butter-colored Pegasus through a raging storm. _A Roman, _she realized. Then, as she watched a gryphon swooped down from the dark thunderclouds and attacked her Pegasus. The girl skillfully struck down the beast with a single swipe of her golden sword. As the gryphon fell and dematerialized, three stormy _aurae_ attacked her. She charged at them and yelled defiantly. Then the image flickered out and the bronze screen darkened.

"No!" Leo yelled. "No, not now. Show me what happens!" He banged on the bronze plate. "Calypso, can you sing again or something?" He pleaded.

She felt a tinge of jealousy and anger. She glared at him. "I suppose that is your girlfriend?" She said angrily. "Your Penelope? Your Elizabeth? Your Annabeth?"

"What?" he said in a surprised and perplexed tone. "That's Reyna. She's not my girlfriend! I need to see more! I need–"

_NEED, _said a voice that was all too familiar. She cringed. She knew who the speaker was. The ground beneath them swirled and then a figure of a human erupted from the ground, though there was nothing quite _human_ about her. Her body was entirely made of sand and dirt, her eyes closed but her lips were smiling.

* * *

It was her grandmother, Gaea. _NEED is an overused word. _She said, her voice sounded like the sound of human speech and rocks grinding together.

Leo pulled out a pair of pliers from his tool belt and threw it at Gaea to no avail. The pliers just passed through her sandy body.

_You want to live,_ she told Leo._ You want to join your friends. But you do not _need _this, my poor boy. It would make no difference. Your friends will die, regardless._

Leo regarded her with a dark glare that made his face look scarier. The mischief that was once in his eyes has been replace by nothing but pain and seething rage.

"What I _don't _need," he said with a low growl, "is more lies from you, Dirt Face." _Dirt Face. _That insult almost made Calypso laugh. "You told me that my great-granddad died in the 1960s. Wrong! You told me that I couldn't save my friends in Rome. Wrong! You told me a lot of things."

Gaea chuckled, her laughter sounded like an incoming landslide.

_I tried to help you make better choices. You could have saved yourself. But you defied me at every step. You built your ship. You joined that foolish quest. Now you are trapped here, helpless, while the mortal world dies._

Leo's hands burst into flame. Calypso put her hand on his shoulder to try to get him to calm down.

"Gaea." She said; summoning every bit of bravery and confidence she could muster. "You are not welcome."

_Ah, Calypso. _Gaea looked like she wanted a hug from her. _Still here, I see, despite the god's promises. Why do you think that is, my dear grandchild? Are the Olympians being spiteful, leaving you with no company except this undergrown fool? _

_Nobody calls Leo undergrown except me._ Calypso thought.

_Or have they simply forgotten you, _Gaea continued, _because you are not worth their time?_

She was mocking Calypso. Her eye twitched.

_Yes. The Olympians are faithless. They do not give second chances. Why do you hold out hope? You supported your father, Atlas, in his great war. You knew that the gods must be destroyed. Why do you hesitate now? I offer you a chance that Zeus will never give you._

"Where were you these last thousand years?" Calypso asked with a sneer. "If you are so concerned with my fate, why do you visit me only now?"

_The earth is slow to wake. War comes in its own time. But do not think that it will pass you by on Ogygia. When I remake the worlds, this prison will be destroyed as well._

Having her home destroyed was unthinkable. "Ogygia destroyed?" Calypso said in shock.

_You do not need to be here when that happens, _Gaea offered. _Join me now. Kill the boy. Spill his blood upon the earth and help me to wake. I will free you and grant you any wish. Freedom. Revenge against the gods. Even a prize. Would you still have the demigod Percy Jackson? I will spare him for you. I will raise him from Tartarus. He will be yours to punish or to love, as you choose. Only kill this trespassing boy. Show your loyalty._

Her offers sounded tempting. Kill Leo and have Percy? Annoying as he was, she couldn't bring herself to murder Leo, even if it was for Percy. Besides, if Gaea exerted effort to find him on Ogygia, then he must be someone important, important enough to foil her.

Calypso channeled all the magic in Ogygia to her fingertips and thrust her hand toward Gaea in a three-clawed gesture against evil. "This is not just my prison, Grandmother. It is my home. And _you_ are the trespasser." She said firmly.

The island identified Gaea as an intruder and a strong wind blew and tore apart the apparition grain by grain.

She heard Leo swallow. "Uh, don't take this the wrong way, but you didn't kill me. Are you crazy?"

_Irritating as you are, I can't bring myself to kill you. _She wanted to admit, but then he might become annoying again.

She felt a deep anger in her gut. Anger at Gaea. "Your friends must need you, or else Gaea would not ask for your death."

"I-uh, yeah. I guess."

"Then we have work to do," she said. "We must get you back to your ship."

_You have to get back to your friends so that you can defeat Gaea._

**-END OF CHAPTER III-**

* * *

_Pollux: _**Yeah, Calypso's definitely on _Team Leo._**

_Castor: _**For once, you actually said something amusing.**

_Pollux: _**Brother, where is Exi?****  
**

_Castor:_ **He left us a note.**

_Pollux:_ **What does it say?**

_Castor:_ **"Pollux and Castor, kindly tell the readers that there might be a reduced amount of activity around here because it is exams week for me and I have to get my head in the books and study. I won't have much time to write more fanfics, but that doesn't mean that I would stop. Tell them that this temporary loss of activity might last for five days. But tell them not to fret, my Christmas break will soon begin, which means I have more time to write my fics for them. If I'm lucky or if I have spare time on my hands, I will post more chapters on this fanfic. That's something you can look forward to. -Exi"**

_Pollux:_ **So he'll be leaving for a while?**

_Castor: _**Seems that way, yes.**

_Pollux: _**For how long?**

_Castor: _**About five to six days, but he says that he will update this fic if he has some time to spare.**

_Pollux: _**Let's just tell them what to expect for the next chapter.**

_Castor:_ **Up next, Chapter IV:"Heartbroken"**

_Pollux: _**Suddenly, I feel so sad.**


	4. Heartbroken

_Pollux: _**Back so soon, boss?**

_Castor: _**We weren't expecting to see you for a few more days.**

_ExiXIII: _**I had some time to spare, so I thought, why not.**

_Castor: _**The readers are waiting.**

_ExiXIII: _**Okay you guys, sorry if it took long but I had very little spare time and lots of things to do. But all that aside, I've managed to finish this chapter for you guys, the readers.**

_Pollux: _**Please take a moment and write what you think about this chapter!**

* * *

**CHAPTER IV: "Heartbroken"**

The first thing on Calypso's Get-Leo-Out-Of-Here to-do list was "Gather Supplies."

She remembered Leo, who looked comfortable while working in his new clothes. She decided to make some of his clothes, just to try them on. She set to work on her loom and she weaved a white cotton shirt and blue denim jeans. She undressed and put on the new clothes. Even though they were less airy than her dresses, she found them more comfortable and more practical than dresses.

Calypso went to her garden to get started on gathering supplies for the journey. She harvested fruits and vegetables and cooked stew and put it in a _pithos _(a containing jar.) The stew that she didn't pack, she gave to Leo, who ate it happily. After she finished packing the food, she went to collect fresh water from a spring near the middle of the island. After that, she'd made medicines from the herbs that grew in her garden, just I'm case Leo gets seasick or if he encounters disease along the way. She managed to pack enough to last a week.

After the supplies, the second thing on her list was "Help in building the ship."

She went over to her loom and weaved a large triangular sail, several coils of rope and bags for the supplies. As a safety measure, she used her magic to fireproof the cloth, so that Leo won't burn them by accident.

At the end of the day, her hands were calloused her clothes were covered with flecks of dirt and she was very exhausted. She changed into her nightgown and collapsed on her bed and feel asleep almost as soon as she lied down.

The next day, Calypso woke up a little late. She was very tired the night before so she must have slept heavily. Seeing that everything she could do to help had already been done, she decided to visit Leo to see if she can help him with anything.

She changed into her shirt and jeans - which she hadn't even washed - and headed for the beach.

* * *

"Hello, Leo." She said when she had arrived at his encampment. "I've collected supplies, made a sail and several coils of rope." She pointed at the worktable. "Can I help you with that?"

He looked up from the device he was assembling. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were anxious to get rid of me." He responded.

"That's a bonus." She admitted.

He raised his brow. "What's with the sudden wardrobe change?" He asked, as if he just noticed that she was wearing a different outfit.

Calypso looked down at her clothes. "What, these? I found them to be more suited for work after I made some for you." She explained.

He looked at her, his gaze moving up and down her body, add if her were appreciating her. She was a bit flattered.

"So?" She prompted.

That snapped him out of his trance. "So... what?" He replied, still dumbstruck.

She nodded at the device. "So can I help? How is it coming?"

"Oh, uh, I'm good here, I guess. If I can wire this thing up to the boat, I should be able to navigate back to the world."

"Now all you need is a boat."

"Uh, yeah, about that," he begun. "By the time I'm done with this little baby over here, I could get started on the lumber."

"You might have noticed that this is no ordinary island." She pointed out. "The trees here are a lot tougher than you think."

"How am I supposed to get wood, then?" He inquired.

"I could help you with that." She suggested. "I could use my magic to weaken the trees a little, so you could chop them down."

"Are you sure about that?" He hesitated. "About me chopping down your trees?"

"Don't worry about that, the trees grow back as soon as they are cut down." She assured him.

"Thanks." He said gratefully, then he continued. "What Gaea said... about you getting off this island. Would you like to try it?"

"What do you mean?" She asked with a puzzled tone.

"Well... I'm not saying it would be fun having you along, always complaining and glaring at me and stuff. But I suppose I could stand it, off you wanted to try."

Her expression softened. Was Leo being generous? This was something Calypso had never seen Leo do. He was not the first to ask her to come with them and leave the island.

"How noble," she muttered. "But no, Leo. If I tried to come with you, your tiny chance of escape would be no chance at all. The gods have placed ancient magic to keep me here. A hero can leave. I cannot. The most important thing is getting you free so you can stop Gaea. Not that I care what happens to you," she added quickly. "But the world's fate is at stake."

"Why would you care about that?"

_Did Leo just ask something that actually made sense? _She pondered on this for a moment. "I suppose I don't like being told what to do-by Gaea or anyone else." She finally said. "As much as I hate the gods sometimes, over the past millennia I've come to see that they're better than the Titans. They're _definitely_ better than the giants. At least the gods kept in touch. Hermes has always been kind to me. And your father, Hephaestus, has often visited. He is a good person.

_Leo resembles his father in more ways than one._ She thought to herself. She noticed that Leo's mouth was hanging open, so she reached out and lifted his chin to close his mouth.

"Now, how can I help?" She asked.

"Oh," he turned his attention to the device he was building then he blurted something out. "You remember that flameproof cloth? You think you can make me a little bag of that fabric?" He gestured with his hands to show how small it will be. "About this size?"

"That is _way_ under my talents." She said as she waved her hand impatiently. "That will only take minutes. Will it help you on your quest?"

"Yeah. It might save a life." _Just like his father, _She thought. _Always thinking one step ahead. _"And, um, could you chip off a little piece of crystal from your cave? I don't need much."

"That's an odd request."

"Humour me."

"All right. Consider it done. I'll make it tonight at the loom, when I've cleaned up. But what can I do now, while my hands are dirty?"

"Well, he said, "you could always twist some more bronze coils. But that's kind of a specialized-"

She took a seat beside him and started braiding the bronze. "Just like weaving, this isn't so hard." She said proudly.

"Huh," Leo sounded impressed. "Well, if you ever get off this island and want a job, let me know. You're not a total klutz."

The idea of a job, working side by side with Leo, made her smile a bit. "A job, eh? Making things in your forge?"

"Nah, we could start our own shop." He suggested. "Leo and Calypso's Garage: Auto Repair and Mechanical Monsters."

She liked the idea, so she joined in. "Fresh fruits and vegetables," she offered.

"Cider and stew," he added. "We could even randomly provide entertainment. You could sing and I could, like, randomly burst into flames."

The idea of singing in front of a crowd while Leo spontaneously combusts every so often was amusing to Calypso. She couldn't help but laugh.

"See, I'm funny." He said.

She cut her laughter and put on a straight face. "You are _not _funny. Get back to work or no cider and stew."

"Yes ma'am" Leo replied.

They sat side by side and worked for the rest of the afternoon.

* * *

The next morning, Calypso went back to Leo's forge to continue helping him with... whatever he was doing.

"Hello, Leo." She said as she sat down on the bench beside him to continue twisting more bronze coils. Leo looked more nervous than usual when she sat.

"What are you building?" She asked out of curiosity and the desire to start a conversation with him. She remembered how good it felt to talk with someone who is not a plant or a non-sentient invisible servant that can't speak or respond. She liked talking to someone who actually talks back.

"Oh, uh, um, its," he stammered, something Calypso found cute for reasons that she cannot understand. "It's a navigation console."

"What does it do?"

"Basically, it's like a GPS."

"_GPS?_ What's that?" She asked as she finished a coil and reached for another.

Leo accepted the finished coil from Calypso. "It's a navigation system we mortals use. It shows us where we are and what route to take if we want to go somewhere." He explained. "This one is more automatic though," he continued. "Once I wire this thing up, it will adjust the sail and rudder so that I could steer myself in the right direction, hands-free!"

"Sounds like a lot of work if you ask me." Calypso said. "Why don't you just use a map and a compass like the navigators used to do? They never had any difficulty getting to their destination."

"Yeah, if you're trying to get to a continent or something. This will let me get somewhere specific, like a coastline."

"You said something about a ship," Calypso said as she gave Leo another finished coil.

"Wow, you twist coils fast." He said in amazement. "Yeah, the _Argo II. _Now _that_ was a vessel."

"And you built it?" She asked, trying to extend the conversation. She missed talking to people in person.

"Yep." He answered proudly. "I've dreamt of building her since I was five, when I was still with _Tia Callida. _My babysitter who turned out to be Hera in disguise.

Calypso could relate. "Yeah, she's like that. Sly and conniving. And I should know, she's my cousin."

"Whoa, wait. Hold up." He said in a confused manner. "Hera's your cousin?"

"Yep." She mimicked Leo.

"Godly family trees always make me confused." He said with a sigh. "Everyone is everyone else's brother's cousin's spouse's grandparent's children twice removed."

She laughed a little at that. "Tell me about your friends." She said.

"You seem to be in an asking mood today. Who are you and what have you done to the real Callie?"

_Callie?! _She elbowed him. "Don't call me that." She said sternly.

Leo rubbed the area where she hit him. She was sure that it will bruise soon. "My friends? Well, there's Jason. He's a son of Jupiter. His girlfriend is Piper, a daughter of Aphrodite who can use charmspeak. Then there's Frank, a pudgy Chinese dude who can turn into any animal he wants. Hazel is a daughter of Pluto and is Frank's girl. Coach Hedge is our resident satyr on the Argo II. There's Festus, my mechanical dragon and..." He hesitated. "There's Percy and Annabeth. I'm sure you already know them."

Calypso felt a tinge of pain in her gut. "How about that roman girl? The one in the projection?"

"Reyna? She's the praetor of Camp Jupiter."

"Is she... your girlfriend?"

"What? Her? No! She hates me."

"Why?" Calypso was relieved. She tried to not make it show in her voice.

"Some eidolons possessed me and they made me fire a ballista on their Forum."

"Eidolons!" She exclaimed with fear, then backed away. "The dead moving within the living. It's unnatural. It creeps me out." She said shakily. "You're not possessed still, are you?"

"Don't worry, Sunshine. I'm not possessed." He assured her. "Piper used her charmspeak to exorcise the eidolons and she made them swear upon the river Styx not to possess me or my friends."

He didn't sound possessed. She reluctantly returned to her seat on the bench beside Leo, her guard was still raised in case he was still possessed. She started twisting bronze coils again.

He pulled out copper wires from his tool belt and continued to work on the navigation console's circuitry. "Wanna hear some stories about our quest up to this point?" He offered, trying to change the subject. Calypso appreciated that.

They worked and exchanged stories all afternoon.

Leo and Calypso sat on the beach next to the bonfire (which was the burning remains of her dining table) the night they finished the navigation console. They ate a picnic together which consisted of freshly baked bread, fresh fruits, stew and apple cider. Behind them were the supplies she packed and between them was the device she helped Leo build.

"All we need now is a boat." She pointed out.

Leo nodded. "I can start chopping wood into boards tomorrow. Few days, we'll have enough wood for a small hull."

"You've made a ship before, your _Argo II._" Leo nodded in response. He wouldn't meet her eyes.

"So how long until you sail?" She asked him.

"Uh, not sure. Another week?"

She was relieved. At first she didn't want him on the island, now, she was relieved to know that he was going to stay for a few more days. She couldn't explain why.

She ran her fingers through the console. "This took so long to make."

"You can't rush perfection." He said with a slight smile.

"Yes, but will it work?"

"Getting out, no problem," he said. "But to get back, I'll need Festus and-"

_Get back? _"_What?_"

He blinked confusion. "Festus. My bronze dragon." He explained slowly, as if he thought she had already forgotten. "Once I figure out how to rebuild him, I'll-"

"You told me about Festus," she cut him off. "But what do you mean _get back?_"

He grinned at her. "Well... to get back here, duh. I'm sure I said that."

"You most definitely did not."

"I'm not gonna leave you here!" He insisted. "After you helped me and everything? Of course I'm coming back. Once I rebuild Festus, he'll be able to handle an improved guidance system. There's this astrolabe that I uh..." He stopped. He looked hesitant to say anything. "...that I found in Bologna. Anyway, I think with that crystal you gave me-"

_So that's what it was for. _"You can't come back," It pained her to say it.

"Because I'm not welcome?" He asked, his voice hinted with sadness and disappointment.

"Because you _can't. _It's impossible. No man finds Ogygia twice." She explained. "That is the rule."

Leo rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well, you might have noticed that I'm not good at following rules." _True, _she thought. "I'm coming back here with my dragon, and we'll spring you. Take you wherever you want to go. It's only fair."

"Fair..." _There is nothing fair in this world._

"You didn't really think I could start Leo and Calypso's Auto Repair without Calypso, did you?" He said in an attempt to lift her spirits. "I can't make cider and stew, and I _sure _can't sing."

She couldn't meet his eyes.

"Well, anyway," He said, "tomorrow I'll start on the lumber. And in a few days..."

She knew that the raft had arrived even without looking up. How? Because the moment the raft appeared was the moment she felt love for Leo Valdez.

* * *

She stood up immediately and loaded the supply bags on the raft. "Hurry! I don't know how long it will stay!"

"But..." he stood slowly, as if his trousers were made of stone. "That's the magic raft?"

"Duh! It _might _work like it's supposed to and take you where you want to go. But we can't be sure. The island's magic is obviously unstable. You must rig up your guidance device to navigate." She said as she ran for and grabbed the console, which got Leo moving as well.

He helped her install the console. His hands sometimes brushing over hers and he would often take her hands and guide her with the wiring. After they were done, she put up the sail while Leo activated his Archimedes Sphere.

She hopped off the raft after the circuit and he mast were ready. "Go," she said. _Please stay, _she wanted to tell him.

Leo turned to face her. She was shaking all over from the effort of holding back her sobs. "The raft finally got here," he said.

She wanted to pull him from that raft and drag him back to the beach to have him for the rest of her immortal life. But she knew that she cannot do that. He must go. He has a quest to complete. She snorted to make her look like she didn't care about him. "You just noticed?"

"But if it only shows up for guys you like-"

She wanted to admit to him that she liked him a lot. The only reason she didn't do so was because she didn't want to him get too attached. She might end up hurting both of their feelings. "Don't push your luck, Leo Valdez, I _still _hate you." Deep down, she knew she was lying to herself.

"Okay." He said.

"And you are _not _coming back here," she insisted. "So don't give me any empty promises."

"How about a _full _promise? Because I'm definitely-"

She didn't want to hear any more. She didn't want him to make promises he can't keep. She didn't want to hope. She didn't want to get hurt again. She held nothing back. She grabbed his face and pulled him into a kiss. That shut him up.

She pushed him away. "That didn't happen."

"Okay." His voice sounded much higher than usual.

"Get out of here." She had difficulty saying that last part.

"Okay."

The wind caught the sails and the raft left the beach. Once the raft was only a faintly visible spot in the distance, Calypso stormed up the beach and plopped down on the white sand, next to their bonfire and unfinished picnic.

She knew she would never see him again.

She let go and let her tears flow. She sat on the beach and cried until she had no more tears to cry with.

**-END OF CHAPTER IV-**

* * *

_Pollux: _**;-;**

_Castor: _**:-(**

_ExiXIII: __***wipes away tears* **_**Okay you two,****tell them something about Chapter V.**

_Castor: _**Chapter V will be spoken from a certain hero's point of view. Who? I think you already know, so I'm not telling.**

_ExiXIII: _**If I have some time, I will write and upload Chapter V. Think you guys can wait a bit? It's exams week for me.**

_Pollux, Castor, Exi: _**Merry Christmas, guys and gals! We'd give you gifts, but we can't, for a number of reasons. So we'll just continue working on the succeeding chapters and continue this fanfic! :D (This is all we can give to you guys. :D)**


	5. Alone Again

_WisegirlAnnabethChase: _**This is like going to not tell the entire story of house of hades, right...and you're going to start writing you're on stuff now right?**

_ExiXIII: _**YES! Thank you for pointing that out. You see, this is the last chapter in which I'll be retelling HoH from a different POV. This one will be spoken from Leo's point of view from JASON LX and the second section of this particular chapter will be spoken from Calypso's point of view, post-Leo. Notice that it is not in the book. The next chapters I will be making up along the way. You can look forward to that.**

* * *

**CHAPTER V: "Alone Again"**

It hasn't even been a day and Leo already missed Calypso.

He still remembered their kiss on the beach the night he left Ogygia. He still remembered how Calypso's lips felt on his, like that moment happened only minutes ago, even if he had been out to sea for about six hours.

_I'm coming back for you, Calypso_. He remembered the oath that he had made the night before. _I swear it on the River Styx_.

The raft lurched and his attention shifted to his journey. He examined the raft again. It looked like it was ready to fall apart at any moment but it seemed to be structurally stable. He grabbed an apple from his supply bag and headed over to the navigation console and punched in some commands into the Archimedes Sphere. It showed him a 3D holographic map of his location. The raft was approaching a landmass about 500 kilometers from his position. He estimatd that he would have reached the shores in less than an hour. _Good, _he thought, _I'm getting sick of the sea_. He tried to imagine what Percy would have done if he heard him say that.

Leo's estimates were right, he made it to land in less than an hour. He left the raft near the harbor where the crew aboard the _Argo II_ could easily see it. He might as well make a sign that says _LEO WAS HERE_ in bright red paint.

He slung his last bag of supplies over his shoulder and headed for the town. He went around and asked the residents where he was. He was in Malta. He stuck his hands in his pockets and was surprised to find out that he had some euro notes. _How? _He wondered. The pants were new, made by Calypso. He can't possibly have any money unless she put it there for him. Now he missed her even more. He headed for a café above the city's fottifications. It had a nice view of the harbor.

Leo took a seat and ordered coffee from the waitress. She soon returned with his coffee, which he small sips. He didn't even _like_ coffee, so why was he drinking it? It must be an effect of his depression. He took the crystal Calypso had given him ot of his pocket and turned it over in his hands. A memory of Ogygia. Something to remind him of his oath and of Calypso. He knew that the crystal and the astrolabe could lead him to her, but how?

He looked out to the harbor and saw the _Argo II_ approaching. He returned the crystal to his pocket.

Normally, he would have run for the harbor to meet his friends (and knock senseless with a hammer anyone who messes with his ship,) but he didn't feel like doing thst. He just waited for his friends to find him here, which they eventually did.

Piper was the first one to greet him, as always. She tackled him with a hug that nearly knocked him off his seat. "Leo!" She exclaimed with delight. "Gods, where have you been?"

"Valdez!" Coach Hedge grinned, then immediately turned hos smile into a scowl. "You ever disappear like that again, you little punk, I'll knock you into next month!"

Frank patted his back with enough force to make him wince. _Has he gotten taller and less... pudgy? _Leo wondred. Even Nico shook hus hand, which was rare. Very rare.

Hazel kissed him on the cheek. "We thought you were dead!"

_Yeah, well, I might as well be. _He tried to smile a bit, to mask his sorrow. "Hey, guys. Nah, nah, I'm good." But he knew that he was far from good.

Jason was the only one who might have had suspicions. He had a concerned look on his face and put his hand on Leo's shoulder. "Hey, man," Jason began. "What happened?"

Leo didn't want to talk about it. Not in front of everyone, at least. This blond Superman with Storm's powers was the only one he could trust with his experiences on the phantom island, but he wasn't ready to share them with him yet. "I got marooned, Long story." He said. He then tried to change the subject to get the other's attention off of him. "What happened with Khione?"

Coach Hedge snorted. "What happened? _Piper_ happened!" He exclaimed proudly. "I'm telling you, this girl has skills!"

"Coach..." Piper protested, slightly blushing from either embarassment or flattery.

The satyr retold the story. He said that Piper was a kung-fu assassin who single-handedly fought off Khione and ten Boreads. Leo knew that Coach Hedge was making things up, because only two Boreads accompany Khione, and because he knew that Piper didn't do Karate.

"Coach! It didn't happen like that at all. I couldn't have done _anything _without Festus." Piper said.

"Shouldn't be possible, unless the upgrades let him respond to voice commands." Leo then remembered the astrolabe and the crystal. He wondered aloud, "but if he's permanently activated, that means the navigation system and the crystal..."

"Crystal?" Jason asked, perplexed.

Leo stopped himself immediately. _None of them should know about Ogygia anc Calypso and my oath. _"Um, nothing." He said, trying to get Jason to be less suspicious. "Anyway, what happened when the wind bomb went off?"

Hazel explained what happened next. Then she asked "What about you Leo? How did you get here?"

Leo shrugged. He really didn't know why the raft brought him here. "I don't know. The raft just brought me here. But why Malta, of all places?"

"Maybe because of this." Frank showed them a brochure he found under the napkin dispenser. "Says here Malta was where Calypso lived."

_She lived here? _"W-what now?" Leo stuttered.

Frank shrugged in response. "According to this, her original home was an island called Gozo just north of here."

_Ogygia. It's called Ogygia. _Leo wanted to correct Frank, but then everyone would know of his secrets. At least now, he knows where to start looking. Whether or not it really is just north of here, he didn't know. Frank finished his sentence without Leo noticing as he was so absorbed in thought back then.

"Ah, a Greek myth thingie! Maybe we get to fight her! Do we get to fight her? 'Cause I'm ready." Coach Hedge said excitedly.

Leo wanted to hit the satyr on the head with a monkey wrench. He resisted. "No, no we don't have to fight her, Coach."

Piper was the first to detect the melancholy in his voice. "Leo, what's wrong? You look-"

"Nothing's wrong!" Leo said hastily as he shot to his feet, _Piper musn't know. No one must know._"Hey, we should get going. We've got work to do!" He added, trying to divert their attention from him, before Piper gets any ideas. If she starts interrogating him, there would be no escape, no way to hide his secret.

"But where did you go?" Hazel asked suspiciously. "Where did you get those clothes? How-"

"Jeez, ladies!" Leo said to get them to stop questioning him. "I appreciate the concern, but I don't need two extra moms!"

"Okay, but-" Piper said until Leo cut her off.

"Ships to fly! Festus to check! Earth goddesses to punch in the face!" Leo said hastily, feigning his enthusias to make them less suspicious. "What are we waiting for? Leo's back!" He spread his arms and tried to grinned. Only Jason didn't buy it, but he was a good sport, so he supported Leo.

"Leo's right." Jason said. "We should get going."

_Thanks, man._ Leo silently expressed his gratitude, which Jason understood.

Hazel suddenly pointed to the horizon and gasped. "Guys..."

What was she pointing at? Leo couldn't see anything, but Hazel, Nico and Jason looked like they've seen a ghost.

Leo took this temporary confusion as an opportunity to compose himself.

"We'll never make it," Nico said. The three must have had a conversation while Leo was sorting his thoughts about Calypso, his promise and the quest at hand.

"We'll defeat them." Jason said. "And we'll make it there fast. We've got Leo back. He'll give us the speed we need." Then he turned to face Leo. "Or is that just hot air?"

Leo grinned in response. "Time to fly, boys and girls, uncle Leo's still got a few tricks up his sleeves!" He exclaimed with confidence and excitement. Despite all that, however, a single thought nagged at the back of his head.

_When all of this is over, I'll return for you, Calypso. I promise._

* * *

Calypso woke up groggily on the sandy beach. Their campfire was now nothing but ashes and embers and their picnic was already being pecked at by birds. Her sorrow must have put her to sleep. She hoped that everything that happened the night before was but a nightmare, that she fell asleep on the beach while they were talking about the navigation console. She went over to check Leo's forge. Empty. Even the furnace's fire was out, which almost never happened when Leo was around.

She hated to admit it, but she missed that annoying little demigod, Leo Valdez.

She fell to her knees and dug her fingers into the sand. "Why?" She muttered while sobbing, her tears falling to the sand, making small dark spots on the beach. "Why?" Her voice now a little louder than a whisper. "Why, Zeus? Why did you have to take him away? Is this your cruel idea of entertainment?" She screamed to heavens. Were the gods laughing at her now? Maybe. Or they're too busy being incapacitated to even laugh. She didn't know.

She rose to her feet and wiped away the tears in her eyes. She walked slowly to her garden while sobbing. "You can do this Calypso, you can get over him." She told herself while walking along the footpath. "You can get over him like how you did with the ones that came before him." But somehow, even she cannot conivnce herself that she really can move on.

"Stupid, stupid Calypso." She muttered. "You should have seen this coming. You should have been more prepared." Leo's voice reverberated in her mind. _Come on, Sunshine. Don't beat yourself up like that. Loosen up a little!_

She made it to her cave. The invisible servants were doing their tasks: sweeping the floor, dusting the counters, washing the dishes etcetera, etcetera. She sat down on one of the chairs that faced the cave entrance, half expecting Leo to poke his head through the silky curtains and say: _Hey, Sunshine. How you doin'?_

"Sunshine..." she muttered. She missed Leo calling her that. It made her feel refreshed. The way he talks to her, he doesn't regard her as a goddess, but as a girl of the same age. It was a lot better than the flattery she had recieved from the others. She missed that, too.

She wanted to forget. But forgetting him would be much, much more difficult than forgetting about the ones before him, not after he changed so many things on her island.

She walked over to her bedroom and plopped face-down on the bed, her tears soaking the pillows and sheets. She wanted to see him again, to hear his voice again. She wanted _to be with him_ again. But she knew that can never be.

She was secretly hoping that Leo would return.

_Oh, Leo. Come back to me. Please. I- I miss you._

* * *

**-END OF CHAPTER V-**

_ExiXIII: _**Christmas nears, which means, I'm going to go on my Holiday Break in three days. Which means you'll get to see more updates. (YAAAAY :D) But where are Pollux and Castor, you ask? They went on their breaks earlier than I did.**

**A tiny chapter when compared to the others, don't you think? I'll do my best to make the succeeding chapters longer and better.**

**Anyways, MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR! May Clotho, Lahkesis and Atropos (they're the Fates, just so you know) smile upon you next year.**


	6. A Dream and a Vision

_ExiXIII: _**This is the second Chapter VI I will be posting since I took down the previous Chapter VI (A Horrible Nightmare) due to complaints about me plagiarizing another author's work. Anyways, I've written another Chapter VI, as promised and I made sure to check that it is free of any plagiarism of any kind. Again, my apologies regarding the previous Chapter VI. Leave some reviews!**

* * *

**CHAPTER VI: "A Dream and a Vision"**

Calypso still couldn't accept the fact that Leo was gone.

She was sitting on the white sandy beach near Leo's encampment with her legs folded up to her chest, her arms wrapped around her legs and her chin on her knees. She was sobbing quietly, silently cursing the gods in both Ancient Greek and English. Her gaze shifted to the coil in her hands and a series of memories surfaced in her mind. Leo crashing into her dining table, Leo enjoying the clothes and food she had made for him, Leo stomping on his burning shirt, Leo working with her to complete the navigation console, and his last night on Ogygia, when they shared their first and last kiss.

_Why do you continue to torture yourself like this? _She asked herself. _You know that he cannot and will not return. _But something told her that she was wrong. _Why do you continue to think about him? Is it because he was different from the others? Is it because of how he talks to you not with flattery, but in the same way he talks to girls of his age? What makes him so special, so set apart from the rest?_

She was done sulking. She went to her garden in order to clear her mind of him. Gardening calms her; it always diverts her attention from such trivial matters.

She was tending to the plants that grew in and around her garden: cutting off dead leaves, trimming the grass, breaking up the soil, watering the plants and applying fertilizer – which had always been her least favourite part of gardening. It was good to work again. It felt good to stretch her limbs every once in a while and wipe the sweat from her forehead. "I finally found a way to get my mind off of-" she immediately cut herself off before she could even mention his name. She stood up and arched her back, her spine making popping sounds, and walked over to the fountain to enjoy a bowl of strawberries that she had harvested. As she was eating, she was admiring her fountain, water trickling from the bronze satyr's mouths, the way they're supposed to work. Then she remembered that it was Leo who fixed the fountain. She wiped her eyes and brushed that thought aside.

After she was finished with her snack, she retrieved her shears from her tool shed and headed for the vineyard to cut off the dead vines. She worked quickly and efficiently, the blades effortlessly slicing through the brown, lifeless vines, as if her shears were brand new. She inspected her shears and remembered Leo. His voice reverberated in her head, _Look, I just sharpened the shears. Cutting vines with a dull blade is dangerous._

Her lips traced a faint smile as she muttered the words "Oh yeah. You're really warming up to me." Her mood instantly went rock bottom and she threw her shears in frustration, the blades impaling a nearby peach tree. She fell to her knees and buried her face into her hands as she wept. "You just don't want me to forget about you, do you, Leo Valdez?" She couldn't blame him; he was only doing her a favour. An image of Leo grinning at her flashed in her mind, which made her feel worse. She stood and stormed back to her cave, wiping her eyes as she went.

That afternoon, she made stew and apple cider and headed to the beach. She sat where she sat the night Leo left and set down the bowl of stew and the goblet of cider near the empty basket that once held their food. She sat there and pretended that Leo was still beside her, admiring the orange-tinged sky that the light of the setting sun had created. Then she had a conversation with herself that went like this:

_Yep, that's it. I've finally lost it._

_No, you haven't. You just have to get over this unhealthy obsession with him._

_That will be easier said than done._

_You're just not trying hard enough._

_How can you forget him, if everywhere you look, there is something that reminds you of him?_

_Good point._

Usually, she would have forgotten about such an infuriating, immature, sarcastic, _clever, funny and strangely interesting _demigod such as Leo by this time. She cannot explain nor understand why she was behaving like this. She stood up and headed home.

A few stars were already visible in the night sky by the time Calypso had gotten home. She put the empty bowl and goblet in the washbasin and one of her invisible servants started washing it for her. She went to the bathroom – a section of the cave that had a large bathtub made of polished stone in its centre. There were glowing plants growing from the crevices of the cave and crystals were sprouting from its ceiling. She undressed and went into the bath that her servants had already drawn for her. When she was done, she got up, dried herself with a towel, put on her nightgown and went to her bedroom.

She decided to check on Leo, so she took her scrying bowl and an image of Leo appeared on the water's surface. He was sleeping soundly in his ship's engine room beside a mechanical table. She decided to get some sleep as well. She went over to her bed and fell asleep as soon as she lay down.

That night, she dreamed of Leo, and a life that they could have had together if he had never left.

* * *

Calypso found herself on the top of a grassy hill. She knew where it was, it was the hill just behind her garden.

"Hey, Sunshine!" A familiar voice called out behind her. She turned slowly to find Leo sitting cross legged, the breeze tousling his dark wavy hair, his eyes lighting up with a mischievous glint. He was wearing the clothes that she had made for him. Oh, how she had missed him. He patted the ground beside him, inviting her to sit down. She sat down and took a loaf of bread from the picnic basket between them and munched on it while Leo told her his stories of his life in Camp Half-Blood and in the mortal world. After he was done telling her his stories, he stood and took her hand and he led her to the beach and went into the water, with her following behind. They splashed water at each other back-and-forth; their laughter was loud and full of emotion. Calypso enjoyed that scene, even though she knew that it was just a dream.

The scene shifted.

Her dream now showed her and Leo beside each other, tending to the plants in _their _garden _together. _Leo was moving plants from the ground to flower pots. "How's this, Callie?" Leo asked. She punched him playfully in the arm. "Don't call me Callie." She said. Leo laughed; a pure, joyful laugh that made Calypso giddy as well. He stood up. "I'll go get some apple cider. You want some?" Calypso nodded and Leo headed for the cave. Having Leo back on Ogygia, it was a beautiful concept. She wanted to stay here, in her dreams, where she can be with Leo, forever. But all good things must end eventually.

She woke up, yawned and stretched her arms. She looked outside the window. The sun was already high up in the sky. If she had to make an estimate, she'd say that it's about ten-o-clock in the morning. She got out of bed and changed into her shirt and jeans – which her invisible servants must've cleaned while she was sleeping – and walked out of her home and into her garden.

* * *

It was about noon when she was given a message by her good friend, Hermes. The messenger god appeared before her in a flash of light, looking like he was prepared for battle. The snakes on his _caduceus _began to writhe and hiss, and soon turned into living serpents.

"Lord Hermes!" Calypso said, surprised. It's not every day you get to see one as passive as Hermes wear a full set of armour. "May I ask, what are you doing here?"

The serpents on the winged staff talked. "'Sssup, Calypso?" Said George. "Stop talking like that, the hissing is a horrible stereotype" Martha said, annoyed. "Hey Calypso. Wait, did you change outfits? You look good." She added. Calypso was flattered by the comment. "Shut up, you two." Hermes intervened. "Calypso, I come here to bring you urgent news."

"And what news might that be, my lord?"

"I've got bad news, worse news and horrible news." Hermes said with a dark tone. "The bad news is, tomorrow's the feast of Spes, which means Gaea shall rise tomorrow." Said George, his hissing has stopped; he was probably intimidated by Martha. "The worse news is, Gaea is on the verge of consciousness, and that the Gigantes have risen from Tartarus." Martha said.

"And the horrible news?" Calypso asked.

Hermes sighed, his eyes looking tired and afraid. "The Gigantes are more powerful than ever." He finally said. "The Second Gigantomachy has already started and we are greatly overpowered. It looks as if we have no chance of victory against them."

Calypso gasped. A thought started forming at the back of her mind. "How about the prophesized seven?" She asked.

"They are on the way to Athens." George said. _Gaea's in Athens? _"They've taken the water path. It looks like they're in a real pickle, being attacked by all those sea monsters. _Karkinos, Scylla, Charybdis _and all the nasty ones."

Calypso took a step back in shock. She could feel her eyes brimming with unshed tears.

"Was it something I said?" George wondered and Martha hit the back of his head. "You _idiot!_" Then Martha's voice became a whisper. "She still has feelings for Percy…"

"No. It's not Percy who I worry for." Calypso said, her voice shaking.

"Then who?" George asked and Martha hit him again. "Ow! What was that for?" He exclaimed. "We'll take our leave now, if you don't mind," said Hermes. "The Big Man's summoning me." He struck the ground with his _caduceus_ and vanished in a flash of bright light.

* * *

She needs to know what is happening with Leo and his crew. She went over to her fountain, twisted one of the satyr's horns, stopping the flow of water, and channelled the magic of Ogygia into the water. She concentrated on a mental image of Leo.

A moment later, the water's surface rippled and once it settled, it showed the _Argo II _and its crewdefending themselves from Scylla, whose countless reptilian heads were striking the ship. The crew was skilfully avoiding Scylla's every move. Jason Grace evaded and countered by calling a bolt of thunder from the sky. Piper McLean was using her cornucopia to draw the monster's attention away from her friends. Hazel Levesque was on her steed, running around Scylla in circles and slashing at the heads that have failed to hit her. Frank Zhang was shooting arrows at the monster's eyes. Festus the Figurehead was breathing fire at Scylla. Annabeth Chase was riding a wave that Percy Jackson had called up, slashing away at the monster's heads. Scylla rammed the ship, which got Leo angry.

"HEY!" He yelled defiantly. "NO ONE HURTS MY VESSEL AND GETS AWAY WITH IT!" He raised his Wii Controller and the ballistae on the port side of the ship took aim at Scylla and fired. He fiddled with more controls (Leo even _dropped the bass_ as he had called it) and more weapons systems activated and opened fire on the beast. Having taken enough, Scylla shrieked, a high-pitched scream that made the waves churn violently for a second. Leo saw his chance and threw a vial of Greek fire at the monster's open mouth. Frank understood the message and turned into an eagle, snatched the vial in mid-air and dropped it into the monster's throat. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" Leo shouted and Hazel, Percy and Annabeth retreated back to the ship.

Scylla's insides glowed with a sickly shade of green and moments after, its mouth was on fire and it soon exploded, sending monster goo flying all over the place. The crew cheered triumphantly. Percy and Jason pat him on the back and Piper tackled him with a bear hug. "Get your hands off of him." Calypso said with a snarl, and then she remembered that Piper was like a sister to Leo. Now Calypso was embarrassed, but it was a good thing that she was alone or else it would turn awkward quickly.

She waved her hand at the water and the image dissipated, leaving only her reflection. She tried scrying again, but this time, she exerted more effort, allowing her to see a short glimpse of the future.

The water's surface rippled and settled. It now showed her a battlefield. It was the Gigantomachy. The Gigantes were fighting against the gods and their demigod children.

Alcyoneus was fighting Hades and Hazel Levesque. Enceladus was fighting Athena and Annabeth Chase. Polybotes was facing Poseidon and Percy Jackson. Porphyrion was fighting Zeus and Jason Grace. Gration was chasing Artemis, who was in the form of a deer, running around him in circles while her hunters fired silver arrows at the giant. Damasen was wielding a drakon bone lance on one hand while mounted on a drakon. He was stabbing at Ephialtes alongside Dionysus, while Ares and Frank Zhang were attacking Otis. _Damasen must have sided with the Olympians, _Calypso wondered. Otus was chasing Apollo's sun car across the sky, leaving a trail of darkness in his wake. Hermes was rapidly zipping around Hippolytus, confusing the giant and throwing him off-balance. Clytius was opposing Hecate, his darkness nullifying her sorcery. Mimas was fighting Hephaestus and Leo Valdez. Leo was flying the _Argo II_, firing every available weapon on the ship at Mimas. She watched in horror as Mimas swatted him and his ship out of the air and fell toward the ground.

Her shock broke her concentration and the image dissipated, leaving ripples across the water's surface.

Now, she was worried sick. She sat down and sobbed. "Oh, Leo," she muttered. "Please be safe."

_Don't die on me now. I need you to come back._

Back on the _Argo II, _the crew was cleaning off the monster goo that had stuck on the hull after Scylla exploded. He was still on the ships controls, leading them to Athens.

He raised his head in triumph. _Hey, Sunshine, did you see that? _He hoped she was listening. _Don't worry. After we're done putting your grandma back to sleep, I'm going to come back for you, whether you like it or not._

**-END OF CHAPTER VI-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Okay, the next two chapters won't have much along the lines of CALEO, they are mostly about the prophecy of seven and fighting Gaea and blah, blah, blah, but what's a story without a little action? :D**

**CHAPTER VI: "The Watery Gauntlet" I've already put in **_**some**_** spoilers here, if you've noticed.**

_**I haven't even reached my three-thousand-words quota. LOL.**_


	7. The Watery Gauntlet

_ExiXIII: _**I've finally finished Chapter VII! Sorry if it took long, it was hard to muster ideas. Anyways, here you are, and enjoy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER VII: "The Watery Gauntlet"**

The _Argo II _was on its way to Athens. Its crew took the naval path, thinking that the ground and air was more heavily defended and that the sea was a lot safer. They were wrong.

Earlier today, they fought Scylla, whose monster goo was still on the ship's hull. Now, they faced another threat. Scylla's sister, Charybdis. Charybdis was basically a living whirlpool with teeth, a mouth but no face. She was just a mouth with an insatiable appetite for ships and demigods. The _Argo II_ was slowly being drawn to its mouth, and they can't do anything to try to get away. The current that Charybdis was creating was too strong for even the ship's upgraded engine to handle. Percy was busy trying to get themselves away from the monster's hungry mouth.

"I can't do this alone, you know!" Percy exclaimed. "Leo, we need more power!"

"The engine's already reached its limit!" Leo shouted back. "If I try to make it exert more effort, it would-" An explosion in the engine room cut him off. "Uh-oh."

"_Uh-oh?_" Piper gasped, panic in her voice. "It's not a good sign if Leo says that."

Leo checked something in the control panel. Festus whirred and squeaked. "Festus said a pipe in the engine room has burst." Leo reported. "The main engine's now delivering less power than it used to."

Charybdis screamed triumphantly. Percy couldn't hold out anymore and fell to his knees in exhaustion. The ship went through the monster's mouth and it closed shut.

"What are we going to do now?" Frank asked nervously. "We're stuck inside a sea monster's stomach and we have no way of getting out."

Everyone turned to Annabeth, who was sitting cross-legged on the deck. She seemed to be in deep thought, as if thinking of a plan to get out. "Don't ask me," she sighed. "I can't think of anything. Unless..." She turned to Leo. "Leo, do you still have any Greek Fire?"

Leo was confused. "Why-" Then realization struck him. "Oh. But it's too dangerous! We could take ourselves out if we do that!"

"It's our only option." She said. "Or we could sit here and wait while Gaea destroys everthing."

_That _everything _includes Ogygia, with Calypso in it. I can't let Gaea destroy her island. _Leo thought to himself. That was enough to get him moving. He flipped some switches on his control panel, and a cannon appeared out of the starboard side and fired a cannonball filled with greek fire at the walls of Charybdis's stomach. The cannonball exploded on impact with green fire. The monster squealed. The stomach shook and the water started to rise.

"It's going to throw up!" Leo exclaimed. "Brace yourselves!"

Charybdis spit them out in a gush of water and saliva. The ship fell into the water at the edge of the whirlpool. The whirlpool churned as the monster tried to swallow them again.

"Will it ever learn?" Piper said, exasperated.

"I don't think it will," Jason replied. Charybdis shrieked and the whirlpool spun more violently, the ship barely missing its countless teeth.

"Leo, get us closer!" Percy ordered.

"What? Are you crazy?" Leo answered.

"Just get us closer! If it won't leave us alone, we're going to have to take the fight to it!"

Leo reluctantly drove the ship closer to Charybdis's mouth. Once they were close enough, Jason shouted a single command. "Now! Attack!"

Leo aimed the ballistae and mortars at Charybdis's throat while Percy controlled the water to try to slow the monster down. Jason called down bolts of thunder from the sky while Frank fired arrows at the monster's mouth. The ballistae fired upon Charybdis and it shrieked after taking enough punishment. "It's working!" Percy yelled triumphantly. "Keep at it!"

Charybdis shut its mouth after taking too much damage to its throat. The raging whirlpool settled and the monster left them be. The crew cheered. Percy was breathing heavily, obviously exhausted. "Not dead," he said, then took a deep breath. "Just... unable to fight." He then collapsed.

Festus whirred, as if trying to tell Leo something. "What is it boy?" Leo asked. Festus creaked and squeaked in response. Leo felt the blood drain from his face. His mouth parted in shock.

Frank to face Leo. "What did he say?" He asked.

"He said that we're not done yet." Leo stammered. He pointed at a large, dark shape that slowly rose from the water. "Look."

* * *

Everyone followed his gaze. They watched in horor as a gigantic crustacean broke the surface of the water.

"Dang," Leo whistled. "That's one big crab. Good eats for at least a week!"

The crab raised its claw and brought it down on the ship with enough force to knock everyone down. Its other claw struck quickly and grabbed Piper, who was slamming her fists on the monster's claw and commanding it to let her go. Leo could hear her charmspeak-laced voice from the other end of the ship. The monster didn't even seem to notice.

"Pipes!" Jason yelled in outrage. He raised his imperial gold sword and the skies over the crab went dark. Thunder roared, and a bright flash of lightning struck the monster in the eye. The attack didn't do much but make it flinch. The monster screeched. Now, it's even angrier than it was before.

The crab tossed Piper into the air and opened its mouth to eat her. Fraank turned into a large falcon and caught Piper by her shirt. He landed Piper next to Jason and turned back into human form. The crab roared and repeatedly jabbed the ship, destroying some of the ballistae and making punctures in the hull.

"LEAVE. MY. SHIP. ALONE!" Leo shouted angrily as he activated every weapon on the ship and took aim at the crab. He shouted his battle cry and opened fire. A multitude of incindiary rounds hit the monster in the face, which created a large, fiery explosion and a black smokescreen. The monster was silent. It must be dead.

They were wrong. Behind the smoke, the monster screamed. Its claws jutted out of the haze and made two large holes on the ship's hull that went all the way down to Leo's and Annabeth's rooms. This made Leo even more infuriated.

"Annabeth, what _is _that thing?" Hazel asked.

The ship shuddered as its hull recieved another hit from the crab's massive claws. "That's the _Karkinos!_" Annabeth answered. "It accompanied the Hydra during one of Hercules's labors."

"How do we kill it?" Frank asked.

"Hercules kicked the Karkinos so hard, that he sent it flying. In some other legends, Hercules crushed it with his foot."

"But none of us are Hercules!" Percy exclaimed. Leo remembered the crazy guy in the Pillars of Hercules who was repeatedly throwing destructive high-velocity coconuts at the ship's hull. "Everything we throw at it is just blocked by its shell! How do we kill it, then?"

The Karkinos reared back and let loose a high-pitched shriek that left its mouth wide open. "There!" Annabeth pointed out. "Its mouth! Its mouth is its weak spot! Direct all your attacks there!"

"Yeah, that's going to be difficult. For a number of reasons..." Hazel said.

"Hold on, I've got this." Piper said with confidence on her face. She aimed her cornucopia at the Karkinos's mouth and unleashed a stream of food items, which the Karkinos ate.

Leo took his chance and aimed the explosive ballistae at its open mouth and fired. He made the Karkinos swallow smoke and fire. The crab staggered and reared back. "Booyah!" Leo exclaimed happily as he did a fist pump. "One point for Team Leo!" Then the Karkinos retaliated. It swung its blade-like pincers in a huge arc, its claws were a fraction of an inch above Leo's hair. If he hadn't ducked, he would have had his head sliced clean off.

Annabeth snapped her fingers. "Yes, that just might work!" She turned to face the crew. "You guys make the Karkinos open its mouth. And once it is open," she turned to face Leo. "You come in for the kill!"

"Yes, ma'am." Leo answered.

Piper threw blueberry muffins at the beast, but this time, the Karkinos didn't even eat them. It must have learned its lesson. It brought its heavy claw down on where Piper was standing, but she skilfully evaded the attack, rolling to her right and making the Karkinos miss completely.

Frank tried a more direct approach. He shot his arrows at the crustacean's eyes. The Karkinos just blocked the arrows with its claws. Leo's turn to attack. "I like my crab _steamed!_" He yelled. Festus snorted steam and breathed fire at the gigantic crustacean, but to no avail. Jason and Percy nodded at each other. Percy called up a large stream of water and Jason struck that stream with thunderbolts. The charged water hit and electrocuted the Karkinos's eyes. A good combination attack. "It's super effective!" Leo cheered. Percy and Jason high-fived.

The Karkinos roared again and Leo took aim at its exposed throat and fired high-grade explosives. That stunned the crab, disabling it and leaving its mouth hanging wide open. Leo tossed Frank a flask of Greek Fire. Frank caught the flask, almost dropped it, then caught it again. Leo heaved a sigh of relief. Frank passed the flask to Jason, who passed it to Piper, who passed it to Hazel, who passed it to Percy, who passed it to Annabeth, who threw the flask at the monster's exposed throat.

"Hit the deck!" Annabeth screamed and all of them went for cover.

The Karkinos's mouth bubbled and spat out goo. Seconds later, its insides exploded, after that, all that was left was its empty carcass, which soon sunk beneath the waves and disintegrated.

"Now is it over?" Frank asked Leo, exasperated.

"I don't know, lemme check. Festus, if you please." Leo said and Festus creaked and whirred. "The radar and sonar aren't picking up anything. Looks like we're in the clear. For now."

"Finally!" Percy said delightedly. "Now I can get some rest!" Then he collapsed on the deck.

Leo's mind drifted off to thoughts about Calypso. He was tapping his fingers on his control panel then he realized he was doing the morse code for _I Love You_, which would have been very awkward, if anyone else on the _Argo II _understood morse code. His thoughts then returned to Calypso.

* * *

Back in Ogygia, Calypso was watching everything. She watched Leo kill Scylla. She watched Leo scare off Charybdis. She watchd Leo lay low the Karkinos. Leo was a valant demigod, even though he looked scrawny. This is why she liked him.

She was watching Leo longingly, when her eye caught a dark shape moving under the _Argo II's_ portside. She recognized what it was and her face contorted with shock. She channeled the magic of Ogygia and concentrated. "Leo!" She shouted at the image. "On the portside, under the ship! Brace yourselves!"

Back on the _Argo II_, Leo heard a familiar voice. _Leo! On the portside, under the ship! Brace Yourselves!_ His head snapped up and looked around, trying to locate the speaker, even though he knew that it was impossible. She was on Ogygia. Unless she found a way to communicate with him.

_Calypso? Is that you? _He asked mentally.

_Yes, you idiot. _The voice answered. _Now, take my advice and prepare for a fight!_

_But how? _He asked. _How are you talking to me all the way from Ogygia?_

_Did you already forget that I have magic? _Calypso's voice explained.

Leo looked to the portside and there it was. Something was swimming under the _Argo II _and it didn't look friendly. This must be what she was warning him about. How could it have appeared? One moment, it wasn't on the scanners, then all of a sudden, there it is. Festus whirred a warning. Even Percy felt its presence.

"Guys..." Percy began. But as he was talking the monster erupted out of the sea and let loose a high-pitched scream. It looked like a serpent about the size of a whale, with gistening black scales, frils on the sides of its neck, fins half as long as a trireme, big yellow eyes and countless teeth.

* * *

"Annabeth..." Jason said. "What _is _that?"

"That's..." Annabeth swallowed. "Thats the Ketos Aithipios."

"Wait. _Ketos Aithiopios?_" Percy said. "You mean like the Ketos my dad sent to-"

"Destroy Ethiopia, yes." Annabeth finished for him. "Perseus killed it by using Medusa's disembodied head to turn it into stone."

"But we don't have the Head of Medusa." Piper pointed out. "How do we kill it?"

"Valdez! I thought you said we're safe!" Frank yelled as he turned to face Leo.

"I did!" Leo answered. "I don't know how, it just _appeared_. It wasn't in the scanners before."

The Ketos rammed the ship, making it lurch to one side, nearly sending everyone hurtling off the ship and into the sea.

"That's _it!_" Leo yelled. "I have had it up to _here _with sea monsters!" He raised his Wii controllers and two cannons appeared out of the portside. The explosives didn't even have any effect on the Ketos, except making it angrier. Leo gulped.

"Leo!" Jason called out. "Feed it with more Greek Fire!"

Leo tossed a vial of Greek Fire and Jason used the winds to bring it to the Ketos's mouth. The vial exploded inside the monster's throat, but it did little to no damage. "Yeah," Leo muttered. "That's not good."

The Ketos shrieked and rammed the ship again, taking out two cannons and making a huge dent on the ship's hull.

Jason raised his sword and a flash of lightning hit the Ketos in the back of its head, just where its frills met the neck. The beast squirmed and shrieked and hit the ship with its massive fins.

"That must be its weak spot!" Annabeth shouted. The Ketos struck with its fins again, destroying a ballista.

"How do we get to it?" Hazel wondered aloud.

"Leo! Bring down the beast with your tethers." Annabeth told Leo.

"What? No! That will destroy my ship!" Leo yelled out.

"Just bring it down!" Annabeth commanded. "Once its about to fall, move so that we will not be hit by its body."

That sounded like a risky idea, but it's the best they've got. All Leo needed is a little timing. He pressed some buttons on his control panel, and three harpoons rose from the deck. The harpoons fired on the Ketos's mouth and stuck to its gums like grappling hooks. Leo pressed another button and the ropes were pulled, dragging the Ketos's head down. Leo disengaged the ropes and moved out of the way, the momentum still pulling down the beast. Its head hit the water with a splash and Jason, Percy and Hazel climbed atop the head and started stabbing at the frills.

THe Ketos shrieked and rose, Jason, Percy and Hazel hanging on to its head. The Ketos dived and the three let go, falling onto a wave that Percy called up. They retuned to the ship.

"Is it gone?" Hazel asked. "Did we scare it away?"

"I don't think so, guys." Leo said. "It's still beneath us!"

The ship shook and the Ketos's massive head poked out of the west. Its tail rose from the east. It brought its tail down on the ship, destroying a large part of the deck and hull. The Ketos shrieked.

Leo fired the mortars and hit the back of its head with explosives. The Ketos reared back and jumped over the ship, diving into the sea on the ship's east. Its massive tail hit the ship and tossed it about a hundered-and-fifty meters west.

"It's coming around for another attack!" Leo yelled.

The Ketos was swimming toward them, its frill sticking out of the water like shark fins. Once it was close enough, the monster leapt out of the water, mouth wide open, ready to take a bite out of the ship. Leo moved the ship just in time, making the Ketos miss the ship's hull by a centimeter. It swam toward the west, preparing for another attack. The frills were swimming away from them and Leo took this opportunity.

Leo aimed the ballista at the Ketos's frills as it was swimming away from them. He had to do this quickly because the beast can turn around to attack again at any moment. The ballista fired, impaling the monster's neck, where it met the frills. Blood gushed out like a fountain and the Ketos shrieked in agony. It sunk and it never surfaced again.

"Are we safe now?" Frank asked Leo.

Leo checked the scanners. "Nothing. I guess we're in the clear."

"Are you sure about that, Valdez?" Frank said as he pointed his finger at him.

"We might encounter a few minor monsters, but nothing as powerful as Ketos or Karkinos." Leo answered.

The crew cheered. Percy and Annabeth chatted near the prow, Hazel started throwing up again and Frank was patting her back, helping her expel the vomit. Piper and Jason were resting beside each other. Buford the Wonder table was going around, doing repairs, Festus was scanning the area for monsters and Leo was alone behind the controls.

But not completely alone. He heard Calypso's voice in his head. _Good job, Leo. _She said. _I never thought you will even be able to scare off the Ketos, but you killed it! You stilll surprise me at times._

_Ye of little faith. _Leo replied. _I still got a few tricks up my sleeve, Sunshine._

Calypso giggled. Even though he cannot see her smile personally, his heart still skipped a beat. He hoped he wasn't blushing, because if anyone noticed, he would be having a hard time explaining, especially to Percy.

_Just be careful out there. _Said Calypso.

_If I didn't know better, _Leo said. _I'd say you were concerned for me._

She laughed. _Don't be so sure about that, Valdez. Just take care. There are a lot more trials and monsters that you and your crew must face._

_Whatever you say, sunshine._

_Hmph. _Then Calypso's voice went silent. She must have ended the connection.

_Yep, _Leo thought to himself. _She's definitely on Team Leo._

* * *

Back in Ogygia, Calypso was eating some grapes that she harvested. That helped her calm her nerves. She almost panicked when the Ketos attacked The _Argo II. _She thought Leo had no chance, but he bested the beast.

"I hope that you're safe, Leo." She said to herself. "I've seen what will happen in the Gigantomachy. I've seen you falling to your death. I hope that I was wrong."

_Except I'm never wrong._

**-END OF CHAPTER VII-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Chapter VIII: "Gigantomachy" (Gigantomachy means "Giant Battle." It comes from the Greek words "Gigantes" - "Giant" and "Machia" - Battle") They'll be fighting the Gigantes and Gaea! **


	8. Gigantomachy

_ExiXIII: _**IT'S CHAPTER VIII! *confetti* I'd like to say thanks to you guys. This story now has 3,000 views and 1,000 visitors. A milestone! *more confetti* When I first posted this, I thought that this would be just another story amidst a sea of stories. I thought that this will be forgotten as soon as it was posted, but it wasn't. Also, please tell me in the reviews if you think that I am a good writer, am I meh or am I horrible. I just want to hear your opinions about me.**

* * *

**CHAPTER VIII: "Gigantomachy"**

Calypso was worried sick for Leo.

She watched Leo best all those monsters in the gauntlet that Gaea had set up as a line of defence. Scylla, Charybdis, Karkinos, Ketos, and some other minor monsters, he had defeated all. Truth be told, she was impressed with the scrawny demigod. Guess that goes to show that you can never judge someone by his looks. She was confident that Leo could defeat Mimas, if she hadn't watched the giant send Leo plummeting toward his doom. She dismissed the thought. She just might burst into tears if she kept thinking about it.

Night came and she got ready for bed. She took a hot bath, changed into her nightgown, headed for her bedroom and went to sleep. That night, she had a nightmare of that horrible scene.

She found herself in the middle of an intense battle between the Gods and the Giants. She heard a series of explosions coming from behind her and a giant shouted "DIE, YOU PATHETIC INSECT!" She turned to face the speaker. It was Mimas. She gasped. She already knew what will happen next and she couldn't bear to look. She tried to look away but she couldn't, her gaze was fixated in this scene.

Mimas swung his hand and hit the _Argo II's _starboard side and sent it falling toward the ground with a crash and an explosion. No mortal could have survived that. "LEO!" She screamed, but her voice was blurry, like she shouted underwater. She ran to the crash site to go check on Leo.

She was appalled by what she saw. Leo was alive, but in great pain. His body was contorted in a gruelling position, almost every bone in his body was broken, he was suffering from numerous bruises and cuts and he was bleeding profusely, his blood soaking the ground, turning it scarlet.

_You could have saved him from his fate, if only you had kept him on your island. _A familiar voice said behind her. She turned to witness the mountain behind her grow a face. It was Gaea. Her eyes were wide open, which means that she was fully awake. A horrible concept. _Shame that he had to die, he hadn't even gotten to keep his promise._

"Promise?" Calypso asked. "What do you mean?"

_Why don't you ask him? _Gaea said in response.

Leo groaned and Calypso turned to face him. "Leo!" She ran to him and took his hand which was already cold and clammy. She stroked his forehead.

"Ca-Cal...ypso? Is... that you?" Leo said, his voice was shaking.

"Shhh, don't talk. You'll just make things worse." Calypso answered.

"Sun...shine, I-I'm sorry... I couldn't...fulfil my...promise..."

"Promise? What promise?"

"I...swore...on the Styx...to come back...for you. Looks like...I won't be able...to do that...anymore..." Leo gasped.

Leo swore to return for her, just like the others. The only difference is, he even swore on the river Styx, which meant that he was serious. The fact that Leo was going to try to come back to her and that the only person who had truly loved her was dying before her eyes was too much to bear. She wept. "No. No,_ NO!_" Calypso screamed, her tears falling on Leo's chest. "You idiot! Don't you _dare _die on me!"

"Heh." Leo said with a bloody grin. "You...really...have warmed...up...to me." His arm went limp and his eyes rolled back as he drew his final breath. Gaea laughed. Leo was dead.

Calypso woke up screaming. Her bed sheets were messy and her pillow was soaked in tears. She must have been tossing and turning and crying in her sleep.

She fixed herself up and went to her garden. Today was the feast day of Spes. Today is the day Gaea rises from her slumber and today shall be the day the seven confront her. She went over to her fountain to scry. She waved her hand at the still water and an image of Leo appeared. He had a look of determination on his face and maybe even fear or nervousness. He was standing behind his control panel, pressing buttons and flipping switches as they headed for Athens to face Gaea and fulfil the prophecy.

* * *

It was dawn. The sun was just rising and Leo could see Athens on the horizon. Annabeth was jumping up and down (probably excited to tread in her mom's city-state), Hazel was still seasick, Frank turned into an eagle to scout ahead, Piper was practicing sword fighting with Jason and Percy was below decks, taking a nap.

Today was the day that Gaea awakens and it's their job to stop them. They were all ready for battle. Everyone's fitted with armour, the ship was fully repaired and all of its weapons systems are back online and ready for use, thanks to Buford the Wonder Table. Festus was creaking and whirring happily, almost like he was trying to sing. Since Piper activated him permanently, he gained more sentience. He seemed more...alive.

Leo could see that the crew was nervous and being the mood-maker of the group, it was his job to raise their spirits. He began to sing a song with the tune of _The Wheels on the Bus_. "Today is the day we beat Gaea, beat Gaea, beat Gaea. Today is the day we beat Gaea and send her back to sleep!"

Piper laughed and sang along. Soon everyone was singing along. That seemed to brighten their mood. Leo did a good job.

"What was the point of this song?" Annabeth asked after they stopped singing.

"To make you all less nervous." Leo explained. "And it worked, right?"

"Okay, maybe it worked. But just a little bit." Hazel said. At least she stopped throwing up.

Percy came out from below decks, rubbing his eyes and yawning. "That was a nice nap." He said as he arched his back. "Are we close?"

"About an hour more." Leo said.

"Okay, then." Percy responded and turned to face the crew. "Are we all ready?"

"Everyone's fully armed, the ship is in fine condition and the weapons systems are ready to fire." Leo said. "We are ready to fight, Cap'n!"

In an hour, the ship reached the shore. They could already hear the sounds of battle. The crew got off the ship and headed inland, toward the battlefield. Leo was the only one who didn't get off the ship.

"Leo," Jason said. "What are you still doing there? Come on!"

"I'll be taking the high road," Leo said. "Give you guys fire support from the air."

"Alright then." Piper said. "Be careful out there."

"Alright, alright, beauty queen. I'll watch my back." Leo dropped the bass on his turntables and the ship took to the skies. He could see his friends walk from the beach to the battlefield. Leo and the _Argo II_ followed behind, but only from a higher altitude.

His thoughts drifted to Calypso, who might be waiting for him back in Ogygia when all of this is over. As he was in deep thought, a Gryphon swooped down from the clouds. That snapped him out of his trance and he pressed some buttons on his controls. The weapons responded slowly. At this rate, the Gryphon would have eaten him by the time the weapons are done deploying. _That's it. I'm doomed. _Festus creaked and breathed fire at the monster, turning it into roasted lion-chicken.

The sounds of battle grew even stronger as they were nearing the battlefield. Leo could see the gods fighting the giants. His dad was fighting Mimas, and Hephaestus looked like he needed some help. His friends below dispersed, heading to their godly parent to assist them.

Leo brought the _Argo II _closer to Mimas to get him within his firing range. Once he was close enough, he aimed his ballistae, cannons, and Gatling guns at the giant. This annoyed Mimas. The giant tried to reach for his ship but Hephaestus swung his big bronze hammer and hit Mimas in the shoulder. The giant flinched and staggered and Leo attacked again. He threw three flasks of Greek Fire and impaled the giant's back with ballistae shots. Mimas was even more enraged than before. He yelled indignantly. "DIE, YOU PATHETIC INSECT!" And he swung his hand in a wide arc, hitting the _Argo II _and knocking Leo overboard.

Leo was falling toward the ground quickly. He could feel his pulse get faster and he could hear the wind roaring in his ears. He could let go now and wait for death, then he thought of Calypso, the immortal gardener girl sitting on the beaches of Ogygia, waiting for his return that will never happen should he die now. That got Leo moving. He pulled some canvas and some rope out of his tool belt and worked quickly to assemble a makeshift parachute that slowed down his fall. He landed and broke his ankle. Luckily, he has some ambrosia in his tool belt, so he retrieved a piece and chewed on it. The pain in his ankle was reduced to a slight throbbing.

Mimas laughed. "Why do you try to continue to live, even though you know that you will die anyway?"

Leo rose to his feet. "Because unlike you," Leo said, panting. "I have someone to live for!" He pulled out a screwdriver from his tool belt and threw it like a dart. The screwdriver hit Mimas in the eye and he staggered. Hephaestus took his chance and swung his hammer in a wide arc, bringing it down on the giant's head. The hammer crushed Mimas's skull and golden ichor flowed. Mimas fell with a _THUD_ and his body disintegrated seconds later.

Hephaestus shrunk to human size and patted Leo on the back, making him wince. "Good job, my son!" He said happily. "I couldn't have brought that scoundrel down if it weren't for you." Above them, Festus whirred. The _Argo II _was okay, but how?

"Festus," Leo began, "how-" Festus creaked and squeaked in response. _I tried to keep the ship in the air when it got hit by the giant's hand. _Said Festus in the mechanical language only Leo understood.

"The explosion?" Leo asked.

_Some explosives falling overboard and hitting the ground._

The _Argo II _landed near Leo and he boarded the ship. Leo went behind the control panel and discovered that the autopilot had been set to off. _Thank you, Piper._ He thanked his good friend in his mind. If it weren't for her, his ship would have already been a burning ruin in a crater on the ground. _Just like Calypso's dining table._ Leo brushed that thought aside. They still have a battle to take place in, an earth goddess to put to sleep. Hephaestus waved his hand goodbye as Leo raised the ship into the air and headed to help his friends fight the Gigantes.

* * *

Calypso was watching everything from her fountain.

When Mimas attacked, she thought Leo was done for, but he found a way to slow down his fall and survive. She cried tears of joy and relief. She realized that she hadn't watched the vision to its end, she just watched Leo get knocked overboard, but he didn't really hit the ground. Leo was alive; he was going to be able to come back for her.

"You can do it, Leo." She said to the image. "I have faith in you."

_You can do it, Leo. I have faith in you._ Leo heard Calypso's voice in his head. That alone was enough to give him strength. He looked down at the battle. There were still some giants that needed defeating.

Ephialtes, Otis, Enceladus, Gration and Mimas were out, only Porphyrion, Polybotes, Otus, Hippolytus, Clytius and Alcyoneus remained. Damasen was still on their side.

Leo assisted Hades and Hazel pull Alcyoneus from Athens. Leo use grappling hooks and dragged the giant beyond the border of Athens, where Hades and Hazel disposed of him. Apollo drove past him and Otus followed behind. Leo shot down Otus with machine guns and Jason, Percy and Artemis finished him off. Hippolytus was fighting Hermes, Damasen and Frank. Damasen and Frank were busy distracting Hippolytus while Hermes wore a cap of invisibility and stealthily dispatched the Giant. Leo watched Hecate burn Clytius (again). Polybotes was stabbed by Poseidon and Percy and Porphyrion was defeated by the power of the gods and the seven combined.

Gaea screamed in outrage. She was awake. She was ready to fight.

Gaea took the form of a mountain with legs, taller than even Mount Everest. Her body of stone, several trees dotted her body. A river originated from a small cave in the side of her neck, the river was flowing down her body in streams that went across her figure. There was a waterfall coming from her shoulder and flowing down her back like a mantle. Her feet were made of stone and large roots and her eyes were composed purely out of crystal.

* * *

**WRITER'S NOTE: **I won't be telling how the seven defeated Gaea since my imagination isn't able to think of a way how. You'll just have to wait until BoO. I'll be skipping over to the part where Gaea has already been defeated. My description of Gaea is my description. I'm not sure how the almighty Riordan would describe the earth mother. –EXI

* * *

They have done it. Gaea has been defeated and put to sleep for another million years. The gods and the seven cheered for they have fulfilled the prophecy. Leo landed the _Argo II _near the gods and they all unloaded the ship. The gods greeted them and cheered for them, some even ran to their children to give them a hug or a handshake or a pat on the back. Hades, Ares and Zeus had to turn to their Roman Aspects to greet their children.

After they were done with the congratulations, Jupiter reverted to Zeus and clapped his hands. A bright flash of lightning struck, nearly blinding Leo and the crew and when the light dissipated, they were on Olympus, inside the Council Hall. Zeus announced with a loud voice: "You have helped us defeat the Gigantes and the earth mother. We shall each give you one reward of your choosing. Think it over carefully, for there is no going back."

Leo was glad to hear that. One wish, any of his choosing. He could finally set Calypso free. He already knew what he was going to wish for.

* * *

Calypso watched the seven put Gaea down.

The prophecy has been fulfilled, the world was safe and most importantly, Leo was alive. She sat on the rim of the central bowl of her fountain, thinking of the promise Leo had made. It was just a dream, there's a possibility that Leo really hadn't promised, but she knew he did. No one mentions swearing upon the River Styx in a dream if they hadn't done so. Leo was going to come back to her and he was serious.

"Leo, my valiant demigod," Calypso said to the winds. "I shall wait for your return."

**-END OF CHAPTER VIII-**

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_The Invisible Pretender: _**I might die next chapter, fair warning. What, with Calypso's vision and all. If Leo dies, it'll break Calypso and I won't be able to handle it. But I'm not one to tell you what to do, so your choice on what you do.**

_ExiXIII: _**What? You really think I'm going to let Leo Valdez die? He's way too important to kill!**

**I can't tell you what is in the next chapter yet, it's still an idea in the back of my mind, but I think you guys already know what Leo's going to wish for. I will write and upload the next chapter once I turn my idea into a story.**


	9. Festus 2-Point-0

_ExiXIII: _**Okay, quick recap. Dirt face has been defeated, the prophecy has been fulfilled, the gods want to thank them and now they're on Olympus to have one request granted. I think we all know what Leo's gonna ask of the gods. **

**About the previous chapter, thanks you guys. My self-esteem was at a minimum low, I was starting to question my ability and I was about to give up on writing. Then I read your reviews and that kept me motivated. You guys keep me going. You rock, you dashing reader, you! Anyways, on to Chapter IX!**

* * *

**CHAPTER IX: "Festus 2.0"**

Gaea has been defeated, the seven were in Olympus and the gods will be giving them any reward of their choosing. Leo can't think of anything better. He can finally set Calypso free. The gods listened to their requests one by one - Percy, Annabeth, Jason, Piper, Frank, Hazel and finally, Leo. He slowly approached the middle of the court where everyone can see him.

Zeus raised an eyebrow. "Well, go on!" He said impatiently.

"I want you to set Calypso free." Leo said.

Percy's jaw dropped, Annabeth had a perplexed look on her face, Jason and Piper exchanged looks, Hazel and Frank scratched their heads in confusion and Aphrodite tried to suppress her urges to squeal like a girl who just found out that their crush is crushing on her too. Leo figured that Aphrodite would overreact. The gods stirred. They were exchanging looks and murmuring things about setting Calypso free and breaking the curse.

_Didn't the son of Poseidon already make the same request?_

_Foolish boy, set Calypso free? Unthinkable!_

_Impossible. The curse can't be broken easily._

_Is he crazy?_

_I think it's cute!_

"Silence!" Zeus yelled and the gods stopped. He turned to face Leo. "Can't you think of a more… sensible request?"

"Yes, can't you just ask for a screwdriver that shoots lasers?" Hephaestus said.

"I already _have_ a fire-breathing _dragon_." Leo answered then he faced Zeus. "You heard me." Leo said to Zeus. He stood his ground and held his head high. "I want Calypso to be free."

"It's not easy to break a curse, especially if it has lasted for three millennia." Zeus answered. His answer annoyed Leo.

"Are you telling me that you don't want to do it?" Leo began. "Don't tell me that the _king of the gods _is a big chicken!"

"Uh, Leo…" Percy warned Leo. "You might want to show even a bit of respect."

Apollo and Hermes were snickering. Aphrodite regarded Leo with interest. Zeus was ready to smite him. "Do you know who I am?!" Zeus shouted with a loud, booming voice that can be heard from the mortal world.

"Yeah," Leo answered indignantly. "You're a coward_ and_ a liar."

Zeus shot to his feet and raised his hand. He summoned a thunderbolt which he threw at Leo. Aphrodite stood between them and parried it with her fan which apparently doubled as a weapon. Aphrodite turned to face Leo and his jaw almost dropped when he looked upon her. She looked a lot like Calypso. Her eyes had flecks of gold in them, her skin was pale and her lips were red and pouty. He remembered Piper saying that Aphrodite changes her appearance to fit a person's description of beauty and perfection. He hoped that he wasn't blushing.

"Aphrodite, what is the meaning of this?" Zeus yelled in outrage.

"Don't you think that Calypso's been alone on that island long enough?" Aphrodite answered, her voice reminding Leo of Calypso. Even her hair turned into a shade of caramel brown and started smelling like cinnamon and wood smoke. "It's been three thousand years, Zeus. She deserves companionship."

Zeus grumbled and sat down. Aphrodite had a satisfied look on her face and returned to her throne.

"It's not easy to break a curse like this, especially if it has lasted for so long." Zeus finally said.

"Didn't Percy already ask for the same thing?" Leo questioned Zeus. "He even made you swear on the River Styx, am I right?"

"Yes. But he should have specified when."

_Lawyers. _"Well now, I ask for the same thing." Leo said with his head held high. "I want Calypso's curse broken _now_."

"I have already told you that we can't." Zeus answered. "A hero has to break the curse." The gods started murmuring again. Aphrodite had a look on her face that said _I like where this is going._

"Silence!" Zeus yelled again and the court fell silent. He started a poll. "All those in favor of helping Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus, break Calypso's curse." Aphrodite was the first to raise her hand. Next were Hermes, Dionysus, Hephaestus, Demeter, Apollo and Athena. "All not in favor." Zeus, Hera, Artemis, Ares and Poseidon. Zeus heaved a sigh. "Motion carried."

"The terms of the curse states that no man can find Ogygia twice." Athena said. "If you find the island again, then you would have broken half of the curse."

"We can only give you the means to reach Ogygia." Hermes said and the snakes on his Caduceus began to writhe. "Yeah, like something that can weaken the magic." George said and Martha continued for him. "So you can enter Ogygia again."

Aphrodite plucked a feather from her fan and it immediately became a small golden ID card attached to a lace made of silk. It had the words _Ogygia Pass_ in Ancient Greek written at the top, a one by one picture of Leo in the middle and _This ID is not transferrable_ was written at the bottom. She gave it to Leo then took his shoulders. Now she _really _looked like Calypso. Her dress has morphed into a white shirt and jeans and her hands had flecks of dirt on them. Leo hoped that his face wasn't as red as it felt like. "Don't lose that card." Aphrodite warned. "If you do, you won't be able to find Ogygia again."

"The only catch is," Apollo said. "That once you find Ogygia, you cannot leave until you break her curse."

"Can't leave Ogygia? How am I supposed to break her curse?" Leo said.

Apollo shrugged.

"At least tell me I can contact my friends."

"You can, actually." Martha answered. "Iris-messages have coverage on Ogygia and Hermes here often visits the island."

Zeus clapped his hands and thunder boomed. The chamber was filled with bright light and when the light dissipated, they were back at Camp Half-Blood, near the Big House. Dionysus got there before they did as he was already reclined in his favorite chair on the porch, dinking a glass of orange juice that used to be wine before he touched it.

* * *

The Athena Parthenos was on Half-Blood Hill and the camp was under repairs from the Roman Attack and the Romans were helping. Leo could see Reyna wearing a hard hat discussing blueprints with Athena and Minerva kids. The Hephaestus cabin and the children of Vulcan were the busiest ones. Every cabin was helping in their own way like the Hecate cabin was using magic to move materials and the Iris cabin was busy decorating. The Demeter cabin brought the plants back to life and the Hermes cabin was the Jack-of-all-Trades. The entire camp noticed their arrival and cheered for them, giving them hugs, high-fives, brofists and handshakes. Some younger campers even asked for autographs. After they were done, they returned to their work. Leo went to Bunker Nine and took a seat beside the workbench and sighed. He took a sheet of blueprint paper and began to sketch blueprints for Festus 2.0.

Right after he was done drawing the blueprints and making estimates on how much materials he requires, he went to the _Argo II_ and removed Festus's head from the ship. Once he returned to Hangar Nine he took some Celestial Bronze and started hammering them into plates to be used for Festus's body. Each plate had to have the right dimensions, or else Festus would become aerodynamically flawed. If he does make a mistake however, he melts the metal and forges it again. He would rarely go out to eat, and when he does go out of Bunker Nine, he doesn't linger and he returns to the bunker after he is done eating. He would stay in the bunker making Festus's plates all day and night, rarely taking naps but never sleeps for the recommended eight hours. Despite all that, he kept rebuilding Festus for there was only one thing keeping him going.

Calypso.

One time he decided to go to the dining pavilion to eat a bit, he crossed paths with his friends (Hazel and Frank were at Camp Half-Blood at the time.) They all had concerned looks on their faces.

"Leo, you look horrible!" Piper said with concern.

"Yeah, you look like a sleepless Nico." Frank said and Nico regarded him with a steely glare.

Piper gave him a mirror. Frank was right; he _did _look like a sleepless Nico. He was thinner, and he looked exhausted. His eyes were sunken and he had eye bags under his eye bags. His hair was messier and more unkempt and his cheekbones were more prominent. He handed Piper the mirror after looking at his malnourished face. He then followed his friends into the dining pavilion. They sat on one table together and ate while they chatted, the subject of most of their conversations were about Leo.

"Leo, what have you been doing in there, man?" Frank asked. "You haven't come out for, like, two days."

Leo remembered what Calypso once said to him back in Ogygia. _You haven't eaten in two days. Take a break and _eat.

"Yeah, you haven't been the same since we found you in Malta." Jason said. "Does it have anything to do with Calypso?"

Leo's eyes widened in shock. Piper noticed. "What happened between you and Calypso?" She asked.

_No use hiding it now. _Leo wouldn't meet any of their eyes. "I'll…" He hesitated. "I'll tell you guys in Bunker Nine. Go there once you're done and don't take anyone else with you." He took one last bite off of his sandwich and rose and headed for the bunker.

Leo thought about how he was going to explain Calypso and his time on Ogygia to them. He took the crystal from his pocket and turned it over in his hands. "Hey, Leo." Leo jumped and turned around. It was Percy. Leo felt a slight anger towards him for leaving Calypso all alone on her island.

"What?" Leo snarled in response.

"I just wanna talk," Percy said. "About Calypso."

"You left her all alone in her island and broke her heart_. _There's nothing to talk about." Leo turned and walked toward Bunker Nine.

When he arrived, it was only a short matter of time before his friends found him. "Whoa," Annabeth said in amazement. "You're trying to rebuild Festus?" She asked.

Leo looked at Festus's unfinished chassis. The engine is in place and a few plates have already been fitted. It was only a matter of time before he was completed. The only problem he faces now is the lack of materials. He ran out of celestial bronze the previous night. "Yes," he said. "I'm going to find Ogygia."

"Why? What happened on Ogygia that makes you want to return?" Frank asked.

Leo stared at him blankly. "I have my reasons."

"Seems to me that you're not telling us everything." Piper said. "You said you'll tell us everything."

Leo sighed. "Okay. There's this girl I met on Ogygia. Calypso. I told her that when all this is over, I'll come back for her." Piper almost overreacted. Leo told them the entire story, being careful not to mention his Stygian Oath. Every now and then, he would glance at Percy to check for his reaction. He was looking down most of the time. Maybe he was feeling the guilt of leaving Calypso.

* * *

"So let me get this straight," Hazel said. "You found an old astrolabe."

"Yes." Leo answered.

"You ended up on Ogygia after Khione shot you into the air."

"Yeah."

"You meet Calypso and she falls in love with you."

"Mmm-hmm."

"You ask her for a crystal before you left and you think that this crystal can lead you back to her."

"Yep."

"And she's waiting for you back in Ogygia?"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it."

"Okay then," Hazel concluded. "You'll need our help if you're ever gonna get there."

"What do you mean?" Leo asked.

"You ran out of materials before you could finish Festus." Jason pointed out. "And Festus looks like he could use more work, he's barely even complete!" Festus ticked in response to Jason.

"Really? You'll help me?" Leo asked hopefully.

"Of course we will!" Frank answered. "If it weren't for you, we would have been sea monster food."

"Just tell us what you need." Piper said as she clapped Leo on the back.

"Thanks, guys." Leo answered. "First, I'll need more metal for Festus."

"On it." Hazel volunteered. She whistled and Arion appeared a fraction of a second later. She mounted him and went to Half-Blood hill. She returned a minute later carrying a large sack of old and discarded celestial bronze weapons and some celestial bronze ore.

Leo whistled. "Dang, girl. Where'd you get all these?"

"I raised them from Half-Blood hill." Hazel explained. "There's a lot of celestial bronze scrap hidden under the earth."

"Need anything else?" Annabeth asked.

"I'll need someone to help me with assembling the moving parts and someone to work on the hydraulics and the boiler." Leo answered. "After that, I'll need help with finishing the chassis."

They went to work. Leo smelted the old weapons and celestial bronze ore. After that, he shaped the celestial bronze into sheets, gears and wires for use in Festus's new body. Annabeth and Piper assisted him in assembling the moving parts for the hind legs, front legs, wings, tail and neck. They took long since Piper would mess up every now and then but they finished the moving parts in one night. His friends said their goodbyes and returned to their respectful cabins while Leo slept in Bunker Nine with Festus's disembodied, yet still active, head.

The next morning, they had to work on the hydraulics for the boiler and steam powered engine so it was only Percy who came to help. Leo was still mad at him so they worked in silence for the rest if the morning, only talking to each other if Percy makes a mistake. Then Percy decided to break the tension.

"We could talk about this, you know." Percy said.

"Talk about what?" Leo answered.

"About Calypso."

Leo looked up from what he was doing and looked at Percy. "You broke her heart, Percy. Twice. When you left, she was heartbroken and she was even more devastated when she learned that you were going out with Annabeth."

"I know. But I had to leave because if I didn't, the world as we know it would have ended."

"She cried at every mention of your name. You made her hope that she would be freed but she wasn't."

"That's a mistake on my part. I never knew that the gods were attorneys-in-law." Percy couldn't meet Leo's gaze. "If you get there, no, _when _you get there, tell her that I'm sorry." He sounded genuinely penitent.

"Yeah, I'll give her the message."

"Something tells me that you're still hiding something."

_He should not know of my oath._ "I'm not hiding anything. I told you guys everything about our encounter."

"There's something else, isn't there?" Percy raised his eyebrow skeptically.

"That's something that you aren't meant to know." Leo said. "The Fates are watching me."

"The Fates are-" Percy said, baffled. Then realization dawned upon him. "Oh. Don't worry. I won't tell anyone."

"You better not."

They worked in silence for the rest of the afternoon.

The hydraulics and the boiler were finished in one afternoon. The boiler was powered by magical coal (enchanted by the Hecate kids) that never burns out. The boiler turned the steam into water and powered the engine, which operated the gears that moved the joints. Festus was almost done. All they had to do know was complete the chassis, attach Festus's head, and perform the necessary wiring. His dragon is nearly ready to fly. And he was ready to get out of here to find Calypso. Percy said his goodbye and Leo didn't sleep at all. He continued to make the plates for the chassis, so that it can be assembled the next day.

Frank and Jason helped Leo with the chassis on the third day. Frank would turn into an elephant and he lifted the plates with his trunk while Jason used the winds to lift the metal and put it into their respective places. Leo worked quickly to rivet the plates and fasten bolts. It took them about an hour and a half to finish Festus's body. All that was left to do now is to attach the head. He took Festus's head and attached it to the neck and wired the head to the body. Festus was overjoyed that he had a new body that he tried to sing in creaks, ticks and whirrs. He even went for a test flight.

When Festus was a flying dot in the distance, Leo sat down at his workbench and began to trim off the excess crystal and polished it so that it would fit into a crevice on the back of the astrolabe. The intricate patterns and lines on the astrolabe were traced by a milky white light that originated from the center. He turned the astrolabe over and saw it turning on its own, pointing at a certain direction and then randomly changing its setting. It must be pointing towards Ogygia.

When Festus returned at night, obviously satisfied with his new body, Leo integrated the new guidance console into his navigation console. Festus started turned his head toward the direction that the astrolabe was pointing at. Festus is ready to go and so was he. "We'll go find Calypso tomorrow." Leo said with a yawn. "Now we could go get some sleep."

Festus said a good night and curled up to his sleeping position. Leo lay against Festus's body, the warmth of the dragon and the humming of the engine soothing him to sleep. He dreamt of Calypso that night.

* * *

He found himself on the beach of Ogygia, Calypso sitting beside him, her hand on top of his. There was a picnic basket between them filled with bread and fruits. The rays of the setting sun made Calypso look twice as beautiful, the orange light highlighting her features and giving her an otherworldly glow. They sat on the beach, exchanging stories and laughing at jokes. Leo didn't want to wake up. He wanted to stay here in his dream world with Calypso. But what fun would that be? He was going to find Ogygia and see Calypso in person again and not just in a dream. Leo woke up to the sound of the breakfast horn. He fixed himself up and headed for the dining pavilion.

The other campers seemed oblivious as to what Leo has planned. Most of them were going around their daily lives and only his friends and crew were the ones who looked like they were going to miss him. Leo ate a big meal, having eaten a little amount of food for the past week. He spent breakfast eating and conversing with his friends, with the occasional _Good Luck out there _or _don't die._ Very motivational. After he was done, he headed for the bunker and his friends followed behind him to say goodbye.

Piper gave him a heavy backpack. "What's in here?" Leo asked.

"Supplies for the trip." Piper answered. "Food, bottles of water, medicines, dollars and a lot of drachmas, if you want to Iris-message us." Piper kissed him on the cheek.

"If you need anything," Jason told him. "You can tell us through Iris-message. We'll send it through Hermes Mail." Then they did their best friend handshake that ended in a manly bro hug.

Frank patted Leo on the back, Hazel kissed his cheek goodbye, Nico shook his hand, Annabeth gave him a hug and Percy high-fived him. "Say hello to Calypso for me." He said.

"Will do." Leo answered.

"Are you sure you don't want us to come with you?" Jason asked.

"Sorry, but this is something I have to do alone." Leo said then he shouldered his backpack. "Besides, if Calypso takes one look at you, she would forget about me!" Jason laughed in response.

Leo mounted Festus and patted the dragon on the neck. "Let's go, boy! Take us to Ogygia!" Festus roared (more of a series of mechanical ticks and squeaks, but you get the point) and took to the skies. Leo's friends waved their hands goodbye and he waved his in return. When Long Island Sound was sitting in the horizon, his thoughts focused on finding the phantom island and meeting its goddess again.

_I'm coming for you, Calypso. Wait for me._

**-END OF CHAPTER IX-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**So Leo's on Festus and they're headed for Ogygia. Yes, they'll see each other again soon enough. All in good time. *confetti* For Chapter X: "Journey of a Thousand Miles"**

_Pollux: _**Hey boss.**

_ExiXIII:_ **What are you two doing here? I thought you were on your leave.**

_Castor: _**Yeah, about that...**


	10. A Journey of a Thousand Miles

_A/N: _**P and C were smitten by Hera for destroying her favorite vase. I won't elaborate on that.**

**Anyways, Leo rebuolt Festus and they have left to search for Ogygia. Will they find it? Of course. The story would be pointless if they didn't. Here it is, CHAPTER X! *leavesomereviews***

* * *

**CHAPTER X: "A Journey of a Thousand Miles"**

The new guidance console was working nicely and Leo and Festus are on the way to Ogygia. The only problem is, they don't know where _exactly _Ogygia is in the Mediterranean.

They reached the Mediterrenean area six hours after they left Camp Half-Blood. They have scoured the vast expanse of blue sea, seaching for the phantom island but so far, they've had no luck finding it. Leo rummaged in the knapsack and pulled out a blueberry muffin that must have come from Piper's cornucopia. He took a bite out of it. Still warm and fresh.

"Hey Festus," Leo begaan, wanting to start a conversation. It's been nine hours since he had a talk with anyone that wasn't his own mind. "You excited to see Ogygia?"

The dragon replied in a series of ticks and whirrs. _It's a very elusive island. Wait, it just moved again. _Festus changed course and turned 180 degrees. _It keeps moving, very difficult to navigate. _The dragon complained in squeaks.

Since Piper permanently activated Festus, he became quite the chatterbox, which was nice because now, Leo had someone to talk to that is not an organic life-form. Festus creaked in alarm. _We've got monsters closing in on us, six o'clock!_

Leo turned around to see a large flock of Stymphalian Birds going toward them quickly. Their bodies were made entirely of metal, and their beaks were made of bronze, ready to tear apart human flesh. The birds squawked in unison, sounding like a metallic shriek. The metallic birds threw their razor-sharp feathers at Leo, who blasted the projectiles with searing flame, turning them into globes of liquid steel that fell to the water.

The flock came closer and some started stabbing at Leo with their beaks and missed. Leo would evade then counter by blasting them with flame that would either melt them or send them hurtling toward the sea. One bird attacked Leo and made a long gash across his arm that started to bleed. It stung like a paper cut that was rinsed with citrus. He pulled a sledgehammer from his belt and whacked the bird square in the face, bending its beak and launching it into the surf.

"Festus, can't you go any faster?" Leo exclaimed. "I'm getting ripped to shreds by metal birds here!"

_I'm already going as fast as I can!_ Festus answered in squeaks and grinding sounds. The dragon turned his head and breathed fire on the Stymphalian Birds and Leo. While he wasn't affected by the fire, most of the stymphalian birds, and his sledgehammer, were. The birds melted and fell to the blue sea below. That cleared out most of them. The ones that remained retreated.

Festus roared triumphantly and Leo cheered, then he winced. The cut that the metallic bird gave him really hurt. He cleaned the cut and took some bandages from the backpack which he used to dressed the wound. Then he took some ambrosia from the bag and chewed on it. The stinging pain on his arm disappeared immediately.

Festus turned right. The island must have relocated again. Leo patted the dragon's neck. "Hey buddy, where are we?"

_We're in Italian territory. _Festus replied.

"What if we take a short break for a while, eh?"

The dragon complied and turned, heading for the nearest town. Leo landed Festus in a wood on the outskirts of aa village, where no one can see him. "Wait here." He told Festus and the dragon sat.

Leo headed for the village to restock on supplies and Fonzies. Why he bought the Fonzies, he had no idea. When he returned to where he landed Festus, he saw a group of tourists taking pictures and admiring him, as if he were a sculpture. This made Leo both proud and offended. Festus is a great piece of work, but he sure is no dumb statue. He whistled and Festus snorted steam and breathed fire on the ground before the tourists and roared, sending them scurrying.

_Quickly! _Festus told Leo. _While they're running! Get on! _Leo mounted Festus and they quikly flied away. Leo could see the tourists coming back with some residents, a reporter and a police officer. The tourists turned their heads and looked for Festus. Leo was snickering.

They flew over Epirus. Leo could see the Temple of Hades on a hill near the Acheron. That invoked memories of the Necromanteion and Clytius. He shuddered at the thought and returned his focus to finding Ogygia. They flew above the Meditteranean for hours until the sun began to set and the stars started to appear. They had to rest for the night so they headed for a nearby town in Spain. Leo landed Festus somewhere a bit far from the town so that this time, no tourists would find him.

"Stay here," Leo told the dragon. "I'll be back tomorrow." Festus curled up and went into slep mode. He was quietly snoring, exhaling steam with every snore.

Leo headed for a nearby town, went into an inn and paid the fee for one night. Communication was easy for him since he spoke spanish fluently. The attendant gave him his keys and showed him to his room. It was a simple room with a bed, a bedside table and a lamp. There was a television on a rack that was mounted to the wall and a door to a small bathroom. He collapsed on the bed as soon as the attendant left and he went to a nice, dreamless sleep.

* * *

He woke up the next morning and fixed himself. He took a shower at the bathroom in his room. His clothes repaired and cleaned themselves, the nasty cut on the fabric along the left sleeve of the shirt has disappeared and the blood stains have vanished as well. He dried himself off, got dressed, shouldered his backpack and went to the clearing where Festus was. The dragon was already awake and was toying with a mouse that he caught.

Leo mounted the dragon and they took flight, headed for whatever direction the astrolabe was pointing at. Of course, not a day can pass for a demigod on a quest without being attacked by at least one monster.

A sharp spike barely missed Leo. He heard it zipping near his ear a saw it bounce of off Festus's bronze plating. He turned around to see a monster with a red lion-like body, the head of a human, the tail of a scorpion and the wings of a bat. The monster reared its tail and fired another spike which Leo dodged. If he didn't move, he would have had a 2 foot long spike sticking out of his forehead. _A red monster that shoots spikes, what was it called?_ Leo scratched his head then evaded another spike.

"Ah, to hell with it!" Leo exclaimed in frustration as he lobbed a fireball at the bat-winged scorpion-tailed monster. The monster retaliated by firing another spike. This time, Leo wasn't able to react fast enough. He moved but the spike grazed his right arm. Even though the wound had been small, it really hurt. Leo watched as the area around the cut slowly turned shades of green and black. Then he realized with a shock that the spikes are venomous.

Bat wings, scorpion tail, red lion, poison spikes? Realization struck. "Manticore!" He exclaimed. The manticore screeched with a trumpet-like voice and fired a volley of poisonous barbs that Festus avoided by swerving to the left. Leo countered with a blast of fire that did little harm to the abomination. "That's not good." He muttered.

The Manticore gained on them and opened its mouth. It had three rows of teeth on both upper and lower jaw. Leo took his chance and shot a fireball down the beast's throat. It choked and exhaled smoke. It seemed more annoyed than before. It closed in on them and tried to impale Leo with its tail. Festus moved to the right, making the Manticore miss, and hit the red flying lion with his tail.

It was preparing for another attack. It quickly gained on them, mouth wided open, ready to take a bite out of Leo. Leo pulled a screwdriver from his tool belt and threw it at the manticore's mouth. It choked again and Festus flew above then finally behind the beast. "Now, Festus!" Leo exclaimed and Festus breathed fire on the winged scorpion-lion.

When Festus was finished cooking the monster, he shut his mouth and flames went out. The manticore was no longer in front of them. Festus must have burnt it to ashes. At least, that's what he thought before a scorpion tail tried to stab him from below. He spike missed, almost hitting Leo and Festus, but it came close. He looked below Festus and saw the manticore flying beneath them, its hide was slightly charred.

It tried to stab at him again. Leo plled out a chainsaw from the tool belt. _I don't know how it got there. Note to self: Read tool belt manual. _He used the chainsasw to cut off the manticore's tail. He managed to amputate it and the monster squirmed in midaiar and bellowed like a broken trumpet. Festus burned the stump, which really hut it since it screamed with agony.

The beast flew and was soon above them. It swooped down to try to eat Leo. Leo pulled a sledgehammer from his tool belt and whacke the monster's head, dislodging several teeth and disorienting it. He hit it again and this time, it lost consciousness and plummeted toward the sea.

Leo cheered then winced, the pain of the Manticore's toxic barb suddenly coming to him. He felt weak and dizzy. He rummaged in his bag and retrieved some salve that he applied on the wound. That seemed to slow the advance of the venom, but for how long? He took a dizziness pill and his nausea dissipated. He _had_ to find Calypso before he dies. He cannot die knowing that he kissed that annyoing and _wonderful _goddesss only once.

A group of Harpies swooped down from the clouds. "That's just _great!_" Leo complained at the skies. Maybe this is Zeus's wasy of punishing him for how he acted back on Olympus. Or maybe he was just unlucky. The Harpies came for them. Festus set them alight with his breath and Leo burned them with fireballs. No matter how many they kill, more appeared. Leo had a crazy idea.

"Festus, get us down to the water!" Leo commanded and the dragon answered complied. They did a nose dive toward the blue sea and the Harpies followed behind. When they were about five meters from the surface, Festus suddently rose, the momentum of the Harpies sending them down to the sea where they were devoured by sea monsters.

They deciced to rest for a bit so they landed in a nearby uninhabited island that was _not _Ogygia. Leo could tell, it didn't emanate the same magical aura as the phantom island did. Festus curled up and Leo took a sandwich from the backpack which he started to nibble on. The sun was high in the sky. He still had a lot of time before nightfall to find Ogygai so he finished his sandwich, got on Festus's back and soared to the air, going in the direction the astrolabe told them to go.

They flew over the Mediterranean, turning every now and then due to the reconfiguring astrolabe. Sometimes, a griffon or a harpy would attack thema dn they would just burn them to flames. After about three hours of flying aimlessly, they encounetered a heavy thunderstorm.

"That's strange," Leo wondered aloud. "There was no storm here a minute ago. Festus, turn back."

The dragon answered in creaks and whirrs. _The guidance console's telling me that it's here._

Thunder boomed and three _venti_ descended from the dark clouds. They started circling Leo and Festus and then they attacked. They struck swiftly, their stormy boddies missing and sometimes hitting Leo, giving him a nasty shock and a messed up hairdo. Leo blasted one with fire and killed it. Remembering something Jason had said about _venti_ creating a vacuum, he held his breath and watched a swirl of air suck the two other venti near it. Then the two that remained attacked.

Leo blasted on with flame and it immediately turned into a vacuum. Festus did a hard right and breathed fire on the third _ventus_. Leo thought it was over, but more _venti _appeared.

"Seriously?!" Leo exclaimed and crushed a _ventus's _skull with his hammer. The vacuum suked the others near it then Festus burned the cluster of storm matter how many they kill, more keep showing up. They have killed about fourteen _venti_ and another group of three appeared. Leo was exhausted. He burned down two _venti_ at once. Festus killed the third one and Leo forgot to hold his breath. The vacuum it created sucked the air out of his lungs and the steam from Festus's systems. Festus was deactivated and Leo felt dizzy as they plummeted toward the sea.

They hit the sea with a splash. Leo sinking was too tired to swim and Festus was sinking to the bottom of the sea, unable to move due to the lack of steam. He was gradually losing consciouness and he felt a hand grab the collar of his shirt. He couldn't look up to see who grabbed him since he was too exhausted. He slipped into unconsciousness.

**-END OF CHAPTER X-**

* * *

_A/N: _**WHO COULD IT BE? OHMYGODSOHMYGODSOHMYGODS *clears throat* I know you're excited. I am too. So I'll be writing the next chapter immediately. I would have done a CALEO christmas fic. I'll try to work on it and I'll upload it as soon as I can. (That's still an uncertainty.)**


	11. Reunion

_ExiXIII: _**Okay, you guys. I was just so excited to write this next chapter that I wasted no time in writing it. It might have been a bit slow, since I was running a bit low on ideas and I had to help prepare for Christmas, but hey, I finished it. Chapter XI. The title says it all. **

* * *

**CHAPTER XI: "Reunion"**

Calypso was weaving new sheets for her bed. She liked weaving fabrics on her loom. She made a sheet with an image of dolphins circling each other. Dolphins were her symbol. She put the sheet on her bed and her invisible servants tucked in the corners. She admired her work as she ran her fingers across the fabric, inspecting it for any flaws that weren't there. Seeing that she had nothing else to do, she went out and into her garden to kill her boredom.

She was tending to her plants, as always. She would occasionally pick a strawberry or pluck an apple and eat it. Every now and then, she would visit the beach, half expecting Leo to come there. She was waiting for him for a long time. What if he's dead? Or worse. What if the roman girl is his girlfreind? The thought horrified her so she brushed it aside. _It's hopeless. _She thought _He might never come back. _She turned and started for her garden.

She heard a roar from behind her. She turned to see a bronze dragon fighting a swarm of _venti_._ A bronze dragon_. Here, she began to think that she was hallucinating, that her conflicted feelings for Leo Valdez finally broke her sanity. She watched the dragon and saw a rider on its back. He had olive skin, messy black hair and pointy ears that Calypso could recognize from anywhere.

It was Leo. And he was in trouble.

She watched the _venti _assault the dragon and she knew that she can't do anything but observe. She watched in horror as the storm spirits created a vacuum that sent Leo and his dragon spiraling toward the sea. They hit the water with a large splash. Luckily, they were in the territory of Ogygia, so Calypso swam to where they sunk and dived.

She grabbed Leo by the collar and swam back to shore. _He's heavier than he looks._ Calypso thought to herself. She got Leo on the beach. He was still alive as she could still feel his pulse. She noticed a green and black patch of skin around a wound on his right arm. It must be poison. She instructed her invisible servants to retrieve the dragon from the bottom of the sea and she carried Leo to her cave to treat his wounds.

She lay Leo on her bed and removed the bandages to inspect the infected area. It had a disgusting green and black color. Leo himself looked pale and clammy. The poison must have been circulating through his enntire body. She recognized the toxin as Manticore Venom, a very hard toxin to make an antidote for.

She rushed to the shelves with the pots full of died herb and spices. Her hands flew over the containers, grabbing ingredients that she would use for making an antidote for the venom. Leo mumbled and groaned. "Hold on for just a little more, my valiant demigod." She said as her tears rolled down her cheeks. He can't die now, not after he has weathered so much to see her again.

She made a paste and a drink out of the herbs. She aplied the paste on Leo's poisoned wound, and the blisters started to receed and the discoloration started to return to normal, then she made Leo drink the medicine and his skin began to take on its default olive color.

She noticed that there were blood stains on his clothes, so she had to take off his shirt and jacket, only to find cuts and gashes that have been made by the monsters that attacked him. His chest was a bit larger and stronger than when they last met. Calypso realized that she was staring and immediately diverted her attention to the wounds, which she started cleaning and dressing.

When she was done, Leo's body covered in bandages. _Oh gods, don't let him die now._ She silently prayed. Leo mumbled in his sleep. "Ca...lypso..." That brought tears to her eyes. Oh, how she had missed him. She carressed his forehead and ran her fingers through his hair. "Hush now, I am here." She said and a few of her tears dropped to his forehead. She decided that he needs some time to rest, so she went to her garden for a while.

The servants had already pulled the dragon from the sea and were trying to restart him, draining the water and igniting the coals of the boiler. The dragon woke and regarded Calypso with its ruby eyes. It playfully snorted steam at her. "What was your name again?" She asked the dragon. Memories surfaced in her mind. Leo once told her the dragon's name. "Festus." She realized and Festus creaked happily.

Leo woke up groggily. He sat up and scratched his head in confusion. The last thing that he remembered was being attacked by venti and plummeting towward the sea. How could he have ended up in a bed?

He got up and turned his head to take in the details of the room. It was composed entirely of crystal, just like the cave Calypso lives in in Ogygia. He heard laughter and mechanical whirring coming from outside so he poked his head though the curtains that cover the cave entrance to find Calypso tickling Festus behind the ear - his favorite spot. If Calypso's here, that could mean two things. He's either dead and that this is an after-death vision or he really is in Ogygia.

* * *

Festus looked up and Calypso followed his gaze. The curtains on the cave entrance were pulled aside by Leo, who was fully awake. The poison seems to have been eradicated from his system. He scratched his head and looked around, his face showing both confusion and amazement. Calypso ca't control herself any longer. She ran to Leo and tackled him with a hug that made him wince.

"I'll take it that you missed me."

She buried her face into his chest and sobbed. She could hear the soothing sound of his heartbeat. Something that assured her that Leo was no hallucination. "Yes, you stupid, stupid demigod." She said as she lightly pounded her fistts against his chest. "I told you not to come back." She really wanted him to come back, she just didn't think that it was possible.

Leo chuckled, something that Calypso really missed. He put his good arm around her. "Yeah, well, you know that I don't really follow orders."

"How?" She asked him without lifting her head. The warmth of Leo was something she found comforting, like the pain of the break-ups over the years is being burned away by him. "How did you find me? No man-"

"Can find Ogygia twice?" Leo finished for her. "Haven't I told you that I'm bad at followring rules?"

Calypso lifted her head and saw a bright grin on Leo's face and his eyes glinted mischeivously. She missed that. She hated to admit it, but she missed him. She noticed that Leo was still wincing and realized that she was crushing his injured arm. She let go of him. "How's the wound?" She asked as she pointed at his arm.

He looked at his wounded arm. "It's fine now. You treated it?"

"Yes, my valiant demigod." Calypso answered. "You were wounded when I dragged you to the shores."

"That was you?" Leo asked then he looked like he just realized something. "You keep calling me 'valiant demigod.' Who're you and what have you done to the real Calypso?"

Calypso laughed. "I keep calling you that since you really are my valiant demigod." She pointed out. "You faced a Manticore and survived its venom!"

Leo rubbed the wound as if remembering his encounter with the Manticore. "It was a nasty one. I had to cut off its tail and send it to the water."

"You still surprise me, Leo Valdez."

"I've still got some tricks up my sleeve, Sunshine."

Yes, that really _is _Leo. Only one person would fight a Manticore and still be crazy enough to call her Sunshine. "Why don't you get some rest? You still need to recover."

"I didn't build a dragon and fly over the Mediterranean and nerly get myself killed just to go to sleep!"

"Trust me, you'll heal faster when you're asleep."

"No." Leo answered stubbornly. Another thing that assured her that she was not dreaming. The sun was starting to set and the stars already started to appear. This gave Calypso an idea.

"Why don't you join me for dinner, then?" She invited him.

"Wait. You mean like, you and me, just the two of us dinner?"

"Well of course." She answered. "You and me are the only ones on this island." _Apart from your dragon and my invisible servants. _Festus tillted his head like a curious puppy.

* * *

She went to her cave and instructed her servants to prepare a table for two on the beachead. Theose who remained prepared a meal and harvested some fruits from the garden. She went to her bedroom and changed into her dresses, which she hadn't used for a long time since Leo left.

She went to the encampent. Her servants have done as they were told. There was a wooden table with intricate designs carved into the wood. On the table was pot roast, apple cider and a bowl of bread and fresh fruits. She took a seat and waited for her guest, who arrived in a matter of moments.

"Whoa," he said in amazement. "You look like the girl I saw when we first met." He was wearing his favorite outfit. Shirt, Jeans and Jacket - which had repaired themselves thanks to the magic that she infused into the fabric.

The comment flattered Calypso. Leo took a seat and the jug of apple cider floated and poured on Leo's goblet. "Why _did _you come back here?"

"I made a promise, and I keep my promises." He said then drank the cider. "That, and I can't leave you here on this island alone."

"You'll stay, right?"

"Will I stay? Of course I'll stay! I didn't fly across the Atlantic just to say 'Hey Calypso? How you doin'?' and leave."

Hearing that filled her with joy. But one thought nagged at the back of her mind. "But the curse. You'll leave again eventually."

"Curse _schmurse. _I've found the island again. The curse is already half broken."

She was relieved. She wouldn't know what to do if he was taken away from her again.

"You didn't destroy my camp." He said. "I always thought you'd bring this place down after I leave."

"Why would I destroy something that belongs to my valiant demigod?" She answered.

"There it is again. 'Valiant demigod.' Am I really that valiant to you?"

"You killed the Karkinos, bested the Ketos, defeated Gaea and braved a Manticore. You escaped death's grasp and came here again. You are deserving of the title."

"Huh." He said, impressed. "_Leo Valdez the Valiant_. Yeah, that has a nice ring to it."

Calypso giggled. "Don't let it get to your head, hero."

"Hero? I thought I was a chrabroiled runt of a demigod." Leo said jokingly.

She laughed. "Well, that was before I got to know you."

They ate and exchanged stories and laughed for the rest of the night. Calypso was fearing that the raft would appear on the beach again, but it didn't. She was relieved.

She noticed that Leo looked exhausted. "Why don't you go get some rest?" She suggested. "You must be tired after all of today's excitement."

"Yeah, sleep sounds nice." He said weakly. His eyes drooped and he shook his head to keep himself awake. "I'll just go get my bedroll and-"

She waved her hand. "No need. My servants have already prepared a guest room, as is protocol when a visitor arrives on my island."

He raised his head. "A guest room? Why didn't you tell me about that the first time I came here?"

"You were much, _much_ more annoying back then." She answered with a bashful grin on her face. She rose and helped him to his feet and led him to a room with a bed, a dresser and an oil lamp on an end table. "Go get some sleep, my hero."

He gave her a drunken smile. "Hero? I thought I was a _valiant demigod?_"

"I like calling you hero more."

He went over to the bed and collapsed on it. He was fast asleep the moment he lay down. "Sleep tight, my valiant demigod." She said as she drew back the curtains.

She headed for her own bedroom and lay on the bed, facing the ceiling. "Don't you _dare _take him away from me." She said. She couldn't bear the thought of losing him again. She hoped that he wouldn't leave her. That he'll stay with he. Forever. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep and dreamt about life with Leo.

**-END OF CHAPTER XI-**

* * *

_ExiXIII:_** OHMYGODSOHMYGODS Leo is back on Calypso's island and both of them are overjoyed to see each other again! *practically raining confetti* Yes, Leo's gonna stay. No, he won't die. Will he break the curse? Not telling.**

**MERRY CHRISTMAS GUYS!**

_Doge: _**Much Christmas. Very Occasion. Such Holiday. Many Gifts. So Excite.**

_ExiXIII: _**Wow.**


	12. Alone no Longer

_ExiXIII: _**Leo came back as promised, and now he lives on Ogygia with Calypso. Things will turn out well for them. Anyways, chapter XIII! **_**I'm running out of ideas for title names...**_

* * *

**CHAPTER XII: "Alone No Longer"**

Calypso woke up earlier than Leo. She could hear him snoring all the way from his bedroom to hers, which were separated by a ten-meter long main chamber.

She got up and went to Leo's room. She put her hand on his hand to check if he's still there and that his return wasn't a dream. He groaned, moved her hand aside and turned his back to her. "No, Jason... don't eat the pancakes." Leo mumbled in his sleep. Her lips traced a smile. He _was _here and he wasn't a dream.

She went back to her bedchamber, changed into her shirt and jeans and headed for the garden to harvest ingredients for breakfast. She gathered oranges, grapes and wheat and put them in a basket that she was carrying over her left arm. After that, she collected eggs from her poultry and milk from her cattle.

She went to the kitchen in her cave and used the wheat, eggs and milk to bake loaves of bread. She instructed her servants to bring the food to a small stone table sitting at the edge of her garden. After her servants have brought the food to its destination, she went to Leo's bedchamber to wake him up.

She nudged him gently. "Wake up, my hero." Leo unconsciously brushed her hand aside. She tried again. "Time to wake, I've prepared breakfast." Still no response. This time, she shouted. "Leo, get up!" Leo woke up screaming and Calypso was suppressing a chuckle.

"Bronze bulls, girl!" Leo exclaimed as he scratched his head. "Why did you do that?"

She patted him gently on the back and smiled. "It's time for breakfast." She said and headed out of the cave with Leo following behind.

They went to a simple, circular stone table with two stone seats opposite to each other. Their breakfast was laid out before them. A bowl of fresh grapes, loaves of bread, cheese and freshly squeezed orange juice. Leo took a loaf of bread, went over to a bronze brazier at the other end of her garden and tossed it into the fire. _An offering. _Calypso mused.

Leo took the seat opposite from her so that they were facing each other. "Why did you wake me up like that?" He asked her with a slight grin on his face.

"I tried waking you up gently." Calypso answered with a little laugh. "It just didn't work."

Leo laughed. Calypso took a bite out of a loaf of bread then pointed his chest. "How are your wounds? Are they recovering?"

Leo looked at the bandages under his shirt. "Yeah, they're fine."

"Good. Glad to hear that." She rose and brushed the crumbs off of her hands. She headed for her tool shed, retrieved her shears and went to the garden.

"Need any help there, sunshine?" Leo asked behind her. She turned and gave him a smile.

"If you insist." Calypso nodded her head toward the tool shed. "You could get a tool from there and assist here."

"Or," He pulled a trowel from his tool belt. "I can do this. Simple."

* * *

Leo knelt and dug the soil with his trowel, to loosen up the earth. They worked for hours under the sun. A hilarious thought came to mind. "Feels like stabbing Gaea in the face." He said in an attempt to break the ice. He stabbed the dirt a little faster. "Yeah. Take that, dirt face. You like that, huh?"

Calypso laughed. A light, pure laugh that made Leo's heart thump like a jackhammer. "Gaea's face might pop out of the dirt if you keep doing that."

He can't help but smirk. "In that case, I'll stab harder." He stabbed the dirt furiously, muttering in Ancient Greek to imitate Calypso.

Calypso punched him playfully in the arm. "Stop that." She said with slight smile on her face.

"That would be fine..." He said then he threw the trowel down in mock anger. "Except he _can't _die here, can he?"

Calypso dropped her shears and pounced on him. They rolled on the grass and laughed. When they stopped, Calypso was on top of Leo. He saw her face redden and she slid off of him. Awkward moment.

They sat up. Calypso straightened her flawless hair with her fingers, maybe out of nervousness. Leo was brushing the dirt that wasn't there off of his shoulders. He got up, reached for Calypso's hand and helped her to her feet. "Would you like some lemonade or something?" He said to break the awkward atmosphere. He patted his tool belt. "I've got a juicer here if you want anything to drink..."

"Yeah, a beverage would sound nice." Calypso said, still flustered.

He went to the orchard and plucked some lemons from a tree then went to the cave and found sugar and a knife. He took a juicer from his tool belt and juiced the lemons, putting the juice in two goblets and mixing the sugar in with it.

He decided to approach Calypso from behind, so he took the long way around, going out of the cave and through the opposite end of the garden, into his encampment and back into the garden. Calypso was sitting with her back turned. She was humming softly. Even if she was humming, Leo could still feel the magic within her voice. "Hey," he said.

Calypso jumped and turned around. "Gods above, don't sneak up on me like that!"

Leo chuckled, gave her a goblet and sat down. "Here you are, milady."

"Milady?" Calypso mused as she took a sip from her goblet. "Who are you and what have you done to Leo?"

Leo laughed. "See? I'm funny." She said.

"Hey, that's my line." Leo responded then took a sip of his lemonade.

He put his hands on the grass and Calypso did as well. His eyes darted to their hands, whose little fingers were only a centimeter apart. He glanced at Calypso every so often. The breeze was making her caramel-colored hair fly behind her, the breeze also bringing the intoxicating cinnamon and wood smoke scent of her hair.

"Today's such a beautiful day, don't you think?" Calypso asked Leo, her gaze fixated on the skies.

Leo followed her gaze. The sky was a nice, light shade of blue, there were few clouds on the sky and the sun was shining brightly. An idea began forming at the back of his mind. "How would you like to fly on a dragon?" Leo prompted.

Festus raised his head and Calypso looked at the dragon. "You mean, fly on Festus?"

"Yep." Leo answered. "Why? Are you afraid that Zeus might smite us?"

"I am the immortal daughter of a Titan." Calypso pointed out. "He _cannot _smite me!"

Leo grinned. "Let's go then."

* * *

Calypso had seen a lot of dragons before, but never actually gotten the chance to ride one. Especially not an automaton. Leo mounted Festus and offered her his arm. She took it and he helped her get on the dragon's back.

Leo patted the dragon's neck. "Let's go, boy!" With a triumphant roar, Festus took to the skies.

She never flew before. Fearing that she might fall off and hit the ground, she wrapped her arms around Leo's waist.

"Didn't know you were afraid of heights!" Leo said then laughed a bit.

"This is my first time flying." Her voice was shaking.

Leo laughed and Festus creaked, probably a chuckle. "Never seen Ogygia from the air before, huh?"

"No." She looked at the entirety of her island. She could see everything from this altitude. The hill which her cave tunneled into, her garden, Leo's camp on the beach. "I never realized how large the island was before."

She had to admit, flying on a dragon was exhilarating. She was enjoying the flight until Leo looked at her with a mischievous grin. "Take us down, boy!" He told the dragon and he complied. Festus was doing a nose dive, plummeting toward the water like an arrow. She screamed and Leo laughed. At the last moment, before they hit the water, Festus pulled up and they completely avoided hitting the sea.

They were flying at a low altitude above the water's surface. She could see the fish swimming underwater. She touched her bare foot to the water. It felt nice, _exciting. _She laughed out of delight. She's never experienced anything quite like this before.

Festus gained altitude and circled over Leo's camp. They began to land slowly. "We will begin our descent, please fasten your seat belts and make sure that you left none of your valuables on the dragon. Thank you for choosing Air Festus. Have a nice day!" Then the dragon's feet touched the ground.

Leo got off and helped Calypso hop off the dragon. She could still feel the Adrenaline coursing through her veins. "That was EXCITING!" She exclaimed happily. "Is that how you feel when you and your dragon take to the skies?"

Leo chuckled. "Sometimes we get attacked by monsters."

She placed he hand on the automaton's snout. "He's a magnificent one, isn't he?" Festus nudged her with his snout. "A work of art."

Festus creaked and whirred. Leo chuckled. "Yeah, so do I."

"Why?" Calypso wondered. "What did he say?"

Leo laughed. "Hey," Calypso insisted. "Tell me."

He went to the footpath that led to her garden. She followed him and Festus followed behind. Leo headed for the hill near her garden and sprinted to the top. She caught up with him and when she finally found him, he was sitting cross-legged with a grin on his face. He patted the ground beside him and gestured for her to take a seat.

She sat down on the grass beside him. He pulled some canvas, sticks and a length of string from his tool belt and assembled them into a kite which flew in the breeze.

"What did he say?" Calypso insisted.

"He said that he thinks you're cool." Leo responded with a smile on his lips.

"So you think _I'm _cool?" She asked.

"Yeah," he answered. "But you weren't when we first met."

"You destroyed my dining table."

He put his hand behind his head. "Heh, sorry for that."

She waved her hand dismissively. "It's okay," She said. "I never used that table much anyways."

Calypso heard Leo's stomach growl. "Looks like my hero is getting hungry." She said. "Why don't I get something to eat?" She rose and started down the hill, heading for her cave.

* * *

Leo had an idea. He would fix Calypso's table to show that he was sorry. He planned to start early tomorrow and try to do his work as quietly as possible, so as not to wake Calypso and arouse her suspicion. He wanted to make it a surprise. Just as he was thinking about that, Calypso climbed up the hill carrying a basket of fresh fruits that looked appetizing. His stomach growled and Calypso gave him a wry smile.

"Here you go." She said as she sat down beside him and put the basket between them.

"Thanks." He said and took a peach from the basket.

"I'm still wondering," Calypso began. "_How_ did you find Ogygia again?"

Leo took the card Aphrodite gave him from his pocket and showed it to Calypso. "With this." He gestured for Festus to come close. He opened the automaton's cranium plate and took the astrolabe. "And this. The crystal led me here."

"So that was what you planned to use the crystal for." Calypso said. Her gaze shifted to the golden ID card. "Let me guess, Aphrodite gave you that, didn't she?"

He smirked. "How'd you know?"

Calypso wagged her finger at the card. "It has her signature on the lower left-hand side." She rose to her feet and headed for her garden. "I'm going to go gardening again. You can help if you want." She waved her hand goodbye and smiled as she walked down the hill.

Festus ticked and hissed. _You two make a great couple._

"You think so?" Leo answered.

_Take it from the old dragon. _Festus replied in creaks and grinds. _I've been in camp very long and I have watched relationships come and go._

"What do you want me to do, then?" Since he was awakened, Festus has gained more intelligence and his vocabulary has significantly improved.

_Give her a present. _The dragon replied. _Surprise her._

"You've been giving me a lot of advice about this stuff, ever since Piper activated you." He turned to face the dragon. "Did any of her Aphrodite attributes rub off on you?"

Festus chuckled in squeaks. _Do you plan on giving her something?_

"I _am _planning to rebuild her dining table." Leo answered.

_That's a good first step. _Festus spread his wings. _I'm going to fly around a bit, just to get used to this new body. _He flapped his bronze wings and soared slowly.

Leo stood and went to Calypso's garden to help her out.

* * *

Calypso was cutting away dead leaves and weeds. For the first time, she was silently thanking the gods for letting Leo find Ogygia again. "Need a hand?" She heard Leo say behind her.

She turned to face him. "Valiant _and _helpful." She smirked. "You amaze me, Leo Valdez."

Leo shrugged. "There's a lot you don't know about me."

She once looked into his past. _Oh, I know a lot about you. _She thought privately. Leo pulled shears from his tool belt and trimmed the grass. They worked side by side for the rest of the afternoon.

When they were done, both of them were covered in dirt and bits of grass. They both headed for the bath at the same time then she pointed out that only one is allowed in the bath at a time, for obvious reasons. Leo, being a gentleman, let her take a bath first. She instructed two of her servants to stand watch by the curtains that cover the entrance to the bathroom. "What, you still don't trust me?" Leo said. Calypso smirked in reply.

After they bathed, they dressed. Calypso was wearing her dress and Leo was wearing his shirt, jeans and jacket. She considered making him a new set of fireproof and more comfortable clothes the next time she weaves.

They went to the beach to eat their dinner. It was just like the night he left, there was a campfire close by, the moon was shining brightly and the waves were calm and reflected the moonlight. They had a simple dinner. Stew and apple cider, which Leo couldn't seem to get sick of. He still likes the stew, even if she served him the same food for days the first time he was in her island. Every now and then, she would glance at the water, fearing that the dreaded raft would come to take him away.

"Relax, Sunshine." Leo said with an assuring tone. "I'm here to stay."

She gave him a grin and they continued eating their dinner. When they were done, they return to the cave to get ready for bed. They said their good nights and headed for their respective bedchambers. She lay at her bed and her eyes began to droop. Excited for what the next day would bring, she soon drifted off to sleep.

**-END OF CHAPTER XII-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Calypso really enjoys Leo's company, doesn't she? Well, she's been alone on her island for so long, but not anymore. She has Leo. *squeals like a little girl* *ahem* Don't worry, I won't write anything about a magical raft. ****I'll cover Leo fixing Calypso's dining table in the next chapter. **


	13. A Pleasant Surprise

_ExiXIII: _**Sorry if I took long, but I had no internet access *screams in agony* and it took me long to write this one. Its getting harder for me to write new chapters since I'm not really an expert on fluffy. Anyways, I did what I can and I finished writing this. Don't forget to leave some reviews!**

* * *

**CHAPTER XIII: "A Pleasant Surprise"**

Leo had made a small water-spurting alarm clock before going to bed.

He had to wake up early, if he was going to rebuild Calypso's dining table. He pulled some gears and springs from his tool belt and assembled it into an alarm clock. He took some plastic tubing which he installed inside the clock and filled it with water, so that when the timer hits zero, it would squirt cold water at his face.

He drifted off to sleep and in two hours, the clock did as it was supposed to and woke him up with jets of cold water. He got up, dried his face with a rag from his trusty tool belt and. Headed for the cave entrance, being careful not to wake Calypso.

He passed by her bedchamber and decided to check on her for a bit. He slightly slid the curtain aside and peeked. Calypso was snoring lightly, something Leo found cute. She turned and talked in her sleep. She hugged her pillow tightly and muttered. "Please don't go," she said and turned again. She must have been dreaming of that night on the beach.

The invisible servants didn't even pay him any attention. They just went around and did their thing. Some were sweeping the floor and others were arranging the jars or cooking beef stew. Leo wondered if those spirits ever got bored.

He left the cave and headed for the beach, near his camp, where Festus was sleeping. The dragon raised his head and ticked and puffed. "Yeah, buddy, We're going to do something nice for Callie." The dragon quietly got up and helped him collect lumber by biting the trees until the fell. The trees were very tough and without Calypso's help, he would have taken forever to cut down just one log. Festus's drill-like teeth chopped down the wood easily.

Leo carved the wood, turned it into a long, rectangular board and carved the designs he saw on the first dining table before he used it as firewood for his bonfire. The table was done and Leo used the furnace in his forge to turn sand into glass. He drew the patterns on the goblet before the glass even had time to cool. He pulled some steel nails from his tool belt and melted it in the furnace's fire, turning them into molten metal ready for reforging and ready to be turned into steel utensils.

The sun hadn't even risen and he was already done. He had a lot more time, so he went to the garden to collect fruit for breakfast. The invisible servants seemed to know of his intent, so one of them came out of the cave carrying an empty basket where Leo could put the fruits he collects into. "Hey, thanks." Leo told the spirit, but no reply. He wasn't even sure if he _or _she _or _it heard him.

Shrugging, Leo continued to collect the fruits and then collected eggs from the chickens, being careful to leave at least one, because if one takes all of a hen's eggs, it will find a new nesting ground, which will make things harder for Calypso should she go out collecting eggs.

Leo went back to his forge and smelted iron tools to form a crude iron disk, which he hammered quietly to form a cast-iron skillet. He went over to the fire pit and lit it. There, he used the skillet to fry the eggs, prepare the bacon that he got from his belt and make pancakes whose pancake mix he also pulled from his belt.

He was done cooking and the invisible servants put the plates of food to the dining table, along with the bowl of bread and fruit and the goblets of apple cider. He took a pen and paper and made a note, which he instructed a servant to put on the table on the side of his bed. The note floated in midair then headed for the cave. Satisfied with his work, Leo took a seat on the dining table and waited for Calypso.

* * *

Calypso woke up, yawned and stretched. She got up and changed from her nightgown to a fresh white shirt and pair of jeans. "It's going to be another wonderful day." She muttered as she wiped the sleep out of her eyes and headed towards Leo's bedchamber to wake her hero.

She slid the curtain ever so slightly and poked her head through. "Time to wake up my-" He wasn't there. Her mind thought of many scenarios explaining his absence. Could he have left her again? Have the gods taken him away? Or perhaps he had just woken up earlier than she did. She found a note on the table beside the bed.

She picked up the small piece of paper. _Good morning, Sunshine. If you find this note, come to the beach, near my forge. I have a surprise for you._ Leo wrote it. How stupid of her to immediately jump to conclusions. "What kind of surprise could Leo possibly have for me?" She mused as she went out of the cave and into the garden.

She had arrived at the beach and was surprised by what she saw. Her dining table was completely repaired. Perfect down to the last detail. Even the goblets, plates and utensils were perfect. It was like Leo had never crashed into it in the first place. What's more, the table was already set up. Fresh fruit and bread was in a large bowl in the middle of the table, there were plates of 'over-easy' eggs and 'bacon' and 'pancakes'-all of which are new to Calypso-and goblets of crisp apple cider.

Leo was sitting on a chair that also looked like brand new. "Hello, Sunshine. You must've found my note." He grinned and spread his arms wide. "Surprise!"

"How-"

"I rebuilt it." Leo said. "To show I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what exactly?"

"Sorry for crashing your table, being a pain the butt and leaving you?"

She ran to him and hugged him tightly. She kissed him and she felt him shaking a bit. His lips were a bit dry and he smelled of smoke and motor oil, which she didn't mind at all. In fact, she had missed this scent. "Oh, Leo. You don't have to apologize for anything." She clutched his shirt, pulled him close and kissed him again. Now, Leo was shaking even more, as if he would combust at any moment. "You came back for me. That's all I could ask for."

Leo had a dumbstruck grin on his face. He gestured to the meal that he and her, no, _their_ servants have prepared. "I didn't wake up before dawn and do all this to receive some kisses, although I really liked that," He added with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Let's eat!"

While they were eating, Leo remembered something. He forgot to Iris-Message his friends, they must be worried. _I'll do it after we finish breakfast. _After they have finished their breakfast, the invisible servants came and whisked the plates and goblets away, some still had food on them. Soon, nothing was left on the table and rags carried by invisible hands started to wipe the table.

* * *

Both of them rose at the same time. "I'm gonna send an Iris-Message to my friends." Leo said.

"This island is cut off from the outside world, remember?" Calypso pointed out.

"The gods have allowed Iris-Messaging in Ogygia." Leo said. "As long as I am the sender."

Calypso nodded an _okay _and Leo tossed a golden drachma into a rainbow formed by the sea spray. "O Iris, goddess of the rainbow, please accept my offering." Leo said to initiate the Iris-Message.

Nothing happened. Suddenly, a female voice answered. "Nope, sorry. Iris is not here."

"What?" Leo said in confusion. "How am I supposed to send a message, then?"

"Use a different incantation." The voice giggled. "Say: _O Fleecy, do me a solid. Show me insert name here._"

Leo remembered something Percy had said about a cloud nymph who was in charge of directing calls for Iris. "Okay then," he said then took a deep breath. "O Fleecy, do me a solid. Show me-" A question formed at the back of his head. "Can I talk to multiple people at once?"

"Yep," Fleecy answered. "But it'll cost you extra. One drachma for every recipient."

"Fine." Leo said then he took five more drachmas from his pocket. "Show me-"

"You have to say the incantation again." Fleecy demanded with a playful tone.

Leo groaned. "O Fleecy, do me a solid. Show me Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, Jason Grace, Piper McLean, Frank Zhang and Hazel Levesque." Leo tossed a drachma into the rainbow for every name spoken.

The rainbow shimmered and showed a projection of his friends. Annabeth was playing chess with Percy and Annabeth was winning. Jason and Piper were on the decommissioned _Argo II_. Frank was chilling in the fifth cohort barracks, which were empty at the time and Hazel was with a war elephant in the Fields of Mars. Their heads turned to the rainbow at the same time and expressions of joy and worry came to their faces. Calypso had a slight scowl on her face, probably because of Percy and Annabeth.

"Leo!" Piper exclaimed in delight.

"Where are you?" Frank asked.

"Yeah, we can't contact you, man." Jason said. "We thought you were dead."

"What do you mean _can't contact me?_"

"We tried." Percy said as he moved his knight to capture Annabeth's pawn. Annabeth moved her bishop which resulted in her checkmating Percy. "The rainbow would just show nothing but static then it would dissipate." Annabeth continued for Percy.

"Why's that?" Hazel asked.

"Ogygia is surrounded by ancient magic. The island's practically cut off from the rest of the world." Calypso answered for Leo. "Leo could send you a message, but he couldn't receive one from you."

"She's Calypso?" Piper asked Leo. "She's the one you've been dreaming about?"

Calypso turned to Leo with a wry smile and with her eyebrow raised in a silent question. Leo chuckled shakily and returned his gaze to the rainbow. "How did you-"

"You talk in your sleep." Piper answered. "You were _so _sweet, the way you talked about her." Piper turned to Calypso. "He said so many nice things about you."

"Like what?" Calypso asked.

"He called you awesome, pretty, sweet, wonderful, clever and a lot more."

Calypso faced Leo. "Oh really?" Leo gave her an awkward grin.

"The important thing is that at least now we know that Leo is alive and well."Jason said.

"When will you be coming back?" Frank asked.

"Does the big guy miss me?" Leo answered mockingly. "I don't really know. Could be weeks, months or years." Leo glanced at Calypso for a bit. Her face shown a little bit of sadness. She must've been thinking that he would be leaving without her. _As if._

Leo glanced at the game of chess Annabeth and Percy were playing. Annabeth already captured two rooks, one knight and four pawns. Percy only captured three pawns. "That was fast." Leo said as he wagged his finger at the chessboard.

Annabeth smirked. "Percy's an incredibly easy opponent to beat."

"Hey!" Percy exclaimed.

Annabeth laughed. "Love you too, seaweed brain." Percy was about to retort but he looked like he had no names to use against her.

"Why don't we leave you two?" Piper said, squealing in delight. She passed her hand through the rainbow and the call was ended. One by one, they cut the rainbows and terminated the connection.

Calypso faced Leo. "What they said about you going back," Calypso began as she nervously picked at her braid. "Are you going to leave again?"

"Not without you, I'm not." He answered.

"Did you mean all those things you have said about me?"

"Of course I did. I wouldn't-"

Calypso cut him off by grabbing his shirt and pulling him into a kiss. Her lips were soft and tasted of peaches. Her hair smelled strongly of cinnamon and wood smoke, a scent he found intoxicating. His arm moved to her waist and pulled her closer while his other hand rested on her cheek.

She let go and gave him a grin. "I'm going gardening for a bit." She winked at him as she started down the footpath. "You can help if you want."

Leo still stood there dumbstruck until Calypso was out of sight and earshot. Festus clanked and puffed. _I told you giving her a present will work._

Leo chuckled as he walked down the footpath, heading towards Calypso's garden to help her with her garden work.

**-END OF CHAPTER XIII-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Okay, Calypso kisses Leo. Thrice. Is that enough fluffy? Because that's all I could muster for one chapter but hopefully, I can get more fluffy in the next. Hopefully.**

**Okay, you're probably wondering why the title and the summary has changed. I've gotten some new ideas and Leo staying on Ogygia with Calypso for an eternity doesn't really give much possibilities to caleo. Also, if I continue to write with Leo staying on Ogygia for eternity, this fic would end soon, and you and I both know that none of us would like that. Bottom line: I've changed the plot so I could add more content.**


	14. A Deal

_ExiXIII: _**Regarding the plot change, here's what I was talking about. If I hadn't change the plot, this story would have ended last chapter. I still had ideas for them, so I'm not going to let that happen. Anyways, here's Chapter 14, a chapter that would never have been written if I hadn't changed my mind.**

* * *

**CHAPTER XIV: "A Deal"**

It's been a month since Leo arrived on Ogygia. For the second time, that is.

Truth be told, life with Leo in the island isn't that bad. He may have been annoying the first time he was here but now that Calypso has gotten to really know him, he's not a nuisance at all. Leo was the second person who stayed on Ogygia for more than a week. The first was Odysseus.

Odysseus was on her island for seven years only because she had kept him prisoner, but Leo was a different case. He didn't want to leave. No matter how many times she had asked him if he missed his friends, his answer was always the same. "I'm here to stay, Sunshine. I'm not leaving you here alone, not again."

Leo was also the first one to accept her offer of companionship, the offer she gave the other heroes, an offer for eternal life here on Ogygia. An offer that has been constantly rejected by every hero who ever washed up on her shores, except for Leo.

Calypso was in her garden, doing yard work as always. Festus's mechanical ticking would attract a woodpecker every so often, thinking that it was some sort of bird song. Festus creaked in irritation as he shook off the birds that collected on his bronze horns.

She was digging at the soil with her trowel so that she could replant a seedling from a flowering pot to the earth. She was done digging a hole for the seedling and she reached for the flowering pot when a pair of hands took the seedling and planted it into the ground for her. "Good morning, Sunshine." A voice directly behind her said playfully.

She looked behind her to find Leo's face close to hers. His striking brown eyes reflected her image and she could smell faint traces of smoke, a scent that Leo always carried. His slightly dry lips touched her forehead in a kiss, the way he always does when he greets her a good morning. Another reason why Leo was a better boyfriend than the past heroes.

Yes, _boyfriend_. Calypso acknowledges Leo as her boyfriend. Probably because he is the only one who has truly loved her, loved her enough to do the impossible and find the cursed island again.

Leo took a trowel from his tool belt and knelt beside her. He dug a hole in the ground so Calypso could use her trowel to transfer the seedlings from the pots to the fresh earth. He really enjoys gardening with her, even though he's not really good at it. He seldom burns holes through the leaves of a plant, but she doesn't get mad about it. She can't get mad at Leo for something he (sometimes) cannot control.

One week after Leo came back, Calypso discovered that he sometimes bursts into flames when he sleeps. This is because of his lack of control of his powers while sleeping. He claimed that it happens when he gets too agitated in his sleep (which happens rarely), most often because of a nightmare. He burned down and reduced the bed - mattress and base - to ashes. They had to make him a new bed that was laced with magic that could dampen his abilities.

Back to the present. Leo was beside her, helping her with her gardening. They are done replanting seedlings, so now they are in the vineyard, cutting off dead vines with shears.

"Don't you ever, you know...get bored of gardening?" Leo asked Calypso in a curious tone. "It seems to be the only thing you've been doing in three thousand years."

"Well, no." She answered. "I love my garden. I don't mind tending to it repeatedly everyday."

"That's why your garden is so beautiful..."

"You speak like you've never seen a garden before."

"I've seen gardens, but nothing like this. Besides, there isn't much room for gardening back in New York."

"What do you mean?'

"There aren't many gardens back where I come from. There are parks, but even those are often small and sometimes even polluted."

"No gardens there?" A world that has changed so much that they have no time to appreciate the beauty of nature? That thought saddened her.

"Don't worry," Leo said in an assuring tone. "We'll make our own garden when I get you out of here."

"I can't wait to get out of here, then."

Leo smirked. "How about I get us a snack?" He suggested. Calypso nodded in response. "Great. Why don't we I meet you on the top of the hill?" Then he took off.

* * *

Calypso waited for him at the top of the hill. He arrived at their spot carrying a plate of six beef tacos - a new food to her. He sat down beside her and put the platter between them.

They were done eating and done tending to their garden. There was nothing much to do now except relax, admire their work and the beauty of nature. Leo laid back, putting his arms behind his head and laying on the grass. Calypso did the same. The cool breeze blew over the hill, making the flowers sway in a mesmerizing way. They were both staring at the sky, making shapes out of clouds that passed by.

"Hey, that one looks like a wrench." Leo said as he pointed at a cloud.

Calypso pointed at another cloud. "That one resembles a dolphin."

They were pointing at clouds and listening to the tranquil chirping of birds when a voice behind them interrupted. "Sorry to interrupt a nice moment," said a familiar female voice then a male voice continued for her with a bit of a hiss, "but we've got news for you."

Both of them looked behind them to see a guy wearing a khaki mailman outfit with knee-length shorts, long black socks, winged boots, a winged hat and a staff with wings and snakes. It was the messenger god, Hermes.

Calypso shot to her feet. "Lord Hermes, what brings you here?"

"Oh, sorry. Was this a bad time? I see you two are having a moment." Martha said apologetically.

"Not a bad time at all." Calypso answered, flustered.

"Big Z wants you two in Olympus." George said.

"How many times have I told you not to call him that?" Hermes said in an exasperated tone.

Leo stood. "Why does he want us in Olympus?" He asked the messenger god.

"They're going to discuss the terms of her curse." Hermes said, nodding at her.

She clench her fists. "What? So he can take Leo away from me?" She said in an enraged tone.

Hermes raised his hands in surrender. "No, not like that." Hermes said quickly, as if he was nervous. "They want to talk about _breaking _your curse."

That calmed her down a bit. "Break my curse? Set me free?" She pointed an accusing finger at Hermes. "This better not be a trick."

'No tricks." The god replied. Hermes struck the ground with his staff and there was a flash of bright light. "Can we get some rats first?" Said George before the light engulfed them all.

* * *

The light dissipated and she found herself in the gods' throne room. The entire council was in front of them and Leo was beside her, so she slipped her hand into his for assurance. Leo squeezed it in response.

"Hermes has probably told you why we have summoned you here." Zeus said in a loud voice then he quietly grumbled. "This was all Aphrodite's idea." Aphrodite had a satisfied look on her face.

"Yes, breaking my curse." Calypso answered.

"We've been talking about that with the _Moirai_." Athena said. Calypso could feel a slight scowl creeping across her face. Athena is the one who ordered the release of Odysseus. Calypso still hadn't forgotten that. "They said they can break the curse," Athena continued. "At a cost."

"What cost?" Leo asked the question that had been forming in her mind for her.

Hermes was the one who answered. "To break the curse, the fates need something in return." He hesitated. "To break the curse, they need to take away your immortality."

Apollo continued for Hermes. "If the curse isn't broken, Leo will be forced to leave, whether he likes it or not. And you'll be left alone on the island again."

Calypso looked over to Leo, who hand was still on hers. She couldn't let him go again. She just can't. "It's your choice." Leo said as if reading her thoughts.

She pondered on this. Have the curse broken, see what the mortal world looks like and grow old with Leo. All at the expense of her immortality. She made her decision. She faced the king of the gods. "Fine." She said. Her answer seemed to surprise everyone in the throne room except Aphrodite, who seemed to be expecting her answer.

Even Leo looked surprised. "Are you sure?" He asked.

She gripped his hand tightly. "If it means spending my life with you, then yes." She answered.

"Very well, then." Zeus said in a loud voice. "The curse will be broken tomorrow midnight. You have until then to pack. Hermes will be transporting you from the island at midnight."

Zeus clapped his hands and thunder boomed. Next thing they know, they were on Ogygia, on the top of the hill where they stood before Hermes brought them to Olympus.

Leo faced her. An look of confusion and maybe even guilt was on his face. "Are you sure about that?" He wondered. "I mean, having your immortality taken away. You'll age. You'll die."

She kissed his forehead. "I made my choice." She said as she stroked his hair. "I don't care if I would age and die, as long as I'm with you."

She hugged him tightly. Leo put his hand under her chin and raised her face gently and kissed her. She could feel him gently pulling her closer with his arm that was behind her waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck and they held their kiss for a long time.

She let go and gave him a grin. "Let's get packing if we want to get out of here." Leo nodded in comprehension and together they packed their belongings, ready to leave the next day.

**-END OF CHAPTER XIV-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Calypso's finally going to be free! *confetti* Next chapter, they leave Ogygia and I won't tell where they go or what they do. Partly because I'm still planning what they **_**would **_**do after they leave the island.**


	15. Freedom (With Some Consequences)

_Hullo: _**AGAIN BY THE END OF THE NIGHT!**

_ExiXIII: _**Sorry about that. I'm in a different time zone. (UCT+8) When it's morning here, it might be night there. Bear with me.**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**HAPPY NEW YEAR! *fireworks* *trumpet sounds***

**Quick Recap. A deal has been stuck and Calypso agreed to give up immortality to be with Leo. What love can make people do.**

_Aphrodite: _**To be honest, I knew that she was going to accept.**

_ExiXIII: _**Of course you were. You're the goddess of love, for crying out loud!**

* * *

**CHAPTER XV: "Freedom (With Some Consequences)"**

Leo had to say, Calypso sure is enthusiastic. He was helping her pack for the trip. Food, Personal Items and even plants.

"I can't wait to see what the mortal world looks like!" Calypso said excitedly as she folded the bed sheets. "There's so many things I want to do, so many things I want to see."

"We'll go sightseeing." Leo replied as he put the silverware into a wooden box.

Calypso packed the jars of herbs from the shelves. "We could go see a - what do you call it?" She put her hand on her chin the way she always does when she's thinking of something. "Ah, yes. A movie!"

Leo was disassembling the loom when she said that. He momentarily looked up from the task at hand and turned to face Calypso. "Did you just ask me out on a date?" He asked and she looked a bit confused.

"What's a date?" She asked in reply.

"You've never heard of a date?" Calypso shook her head in reply. "I'll show you when we get there."

"Then in that case, I can't wait." Calypso said excitedly as she took a potted fern that hung from the crystalline ceiling. She transferred the fern from the pot to a cloth bag that she had made before they began packing. She looked at the plant for a while and her eyes gleamed with anticipation as if she had gotten an idea. "We could start our own garden."

"We could do that." Leo agreed. "A beautiful garden in a place where only a few plants grow."

"We could also start that shop of yours." She added. "Leo and Calypso's Garage."

"You remember that?" Leo said as he put the disassembled loom into a wooden box.

"Of course I do." She answered then put the plant that was in her hands into another wooden box. "Why would I forget?" She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "I can't wait to start a new life in the mortal world with you."

Leo nodded. "We're going to have to go to camp first."

"Ah, yes. Camp!" Calypso said excitedly. "I can't wait to see your camp."

* * *

It was sundown when they finished packing. Calypso took three of every plant and fruit in her garden to be replanted once they get to Manhattan. They took almost every piece of furniture in the cave, even the fountain and the gardening tools. They put it all into separate wooden crates because Hermes has offered to be their mover.

The invisible servants made them cider and stew and set up a picnic mat on a nice spot on the beach, near Leo's encampment. There, they ate their food while they waited for midnight, the time when Hermes would come and help them get out of the island. Leo told her stories of the mortal world as they waited, which made her even more excited.

The sun was setting. "It's a nice sunset, isn't it?" Calypso prompted. "Are the sunsets in your cities like this?" It was the last sunset she'll ever see in Ogygia.

"Yeah." Leo said.

Calypso hugged her knees to her chest as the moon began to rise and the stars began to appear. Leo lit the camp fire and lay on the sand with his hands behind his head. She did the same and they stared at the stars and named constellations together.

"Reminds me of that night." Leo said.

"The night you left?" Calypso asked to verify.

"Yeah, that night." Leo answered. "This time though, both of us are leaving." He turned his head towards Festus. "And this time, we're leaving on a dragon."

Festus looked up from his curled-up position and creaked happily. "You ready to fly, buddy?" Leo asked the automaton and playfully snorted steam at both of them in what might have been a yes.

"Hey, guys." Said a familiar voice behind them and it spoke with a hiss, like a snake. Another voice continued for him. "You ready to leave?"

Calypso rose to her feet, brushed off the sand from her back and arms, helped Leo up and turned around to find Hermes in his usual mailman outfit. "Have you packed everything you need?" Asked the messenger god.

"Yes, Lord Hermes." Calypso answered. "Everything's in the garden."

"Okay then." Hermes upturned his palms. "I'm going to need some help in loading it in the truck."

"I'm going to instruct my servants to do that." She answered and she beckoned for one of her servants. She instructed it to tell the others to put the crates in Hermes's moving truck.

When their belongings were in the truck and they were ready to leave, they got on Festus's back, waiting for the messenger god's cue.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Hermes asked and George continued. "You'll lose your immortality if you do." Martha finished for George. "A bonus is, you'll retain your magical abilities."

"But?" Calypso prompted, knowing that there was more.

"Your magic will be greatly reduced." Martha answered. "You won't be at full power." George finished for her. "Zeus doesn't want titans 'running amok' and causing chaos." Hermes answered her before she even got to ask why, as if he had been reading her mind.

Calypso thought of many colorful curse words that she could throw at Zeus's face. She decided to restrain herself. This is the only chance she'll get at freedom and she had no choice but to take it. "We're ready to go." She told the messenger god.

"Alrighty then." Hermes answered and raised his caduceus. She thought that he will teleport them out of the island but instead, he shook his staff like a stick. "Hey, boy." Hermes told Festus. "You see the stick?" He moved the staff up and down and Festus's head followed like a dog ready to play fetch.

"What?" George exclaimed. "You can't be serious." Said Martha. Hermes taunted the automaton with his staff. Hermes raised the staff, getting ready to throw it. "Oh gods." George and Martha said in unison.

"Go get it!" Hermes threw the staff and she could hear George exclaim. "YOU OWE ME A LOT OF RAAAAATTTS!" Festus reared and took to the skies, going after the caduceus.

As they were getting farther away from the island, she could feel herself getting weaker, her power slowly getting sapped away. She got dizzier and spots danced before her eyes. Eventually, she felt exhausted and she slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

"Calypso?" Leo said, trying to wake her. "Hey, Sunshine." He gently patted her cheek to get her back to consciousness. "Callie, wake up." No response. _She must have passed out_. Leo concluded. He knew she was still alive since he could still hear her soft and steady breathing.

Festus was trying to catch up to the staff that was still airborne after all this time. _Hermes sure can_ _throw a stick_. Leo thought to himself. The snakes were still screaming as they were flying across the sky. At these speeds, he estimated that they would reach Camp Half-Blood in six hours, still a long time to go.

Leo began planning what they would do after they get to Camp Half-Blood. Would he introduce her to his friends or take her around Camp Half-Blood? Where would he take her to? What would they even do first? Leo decided that they would just go sightseeing first then he would take her where she wants to.

They've been flying for four hours and Leo was nibbling on a loaf of bread from the backpack Piper made him. The food was fresh. They've restocked it before they left. He was almost hoping that a monster would appear so he could kill it and his boredom.

He could feel Calypso stirring behind her. She mumbled and Leo turned his head to look at her. Her arms were still around his waist and her head was lying against his back. She raised her head and her eyes fluttered open.

"Hey, Sunshine." He said. "You've been out cold for four hours."

"I was?" Calypso replied.

"Yeah. What happened back there?"

"I-I don't know." She answered, confusion in her voice. "I just felt weaker and weaker until I lost consciousness."

Leo could probably guess why. "How much longer?" She asked.

"We're not very far." Leo answered. "We'll be there soon. Two hours more, I guess."

They flew for another two hours. The sun was beginning to rise and Leo could see the shoreline of Long Island Sound. They were nearing Camp Half-Blood and usually by this time, some of the campers, especially the senior counselors were awake. He could also see a mailman standing on the beach. It was Hermes. He raised his hand and caught the staff. Festus landed on the shore soon after.

"Don't you _ever _do that again!" George exclaimed then threw up, a half digested rat coming along with his vomit. "There goes lunch." He said sadly.

Hermes chuckled. "I'll just get you two more rats."

"Good." George replied. "You owe us a lot of rats after that stunt."

Leo got off Festus and he helped Calypso unmount the dragon. Hermes looked over to them. "The curse has been broken." Hermes said in a congratulating manner, though his eyes showed otherwise. He must have been sorry for Calypso for losing her immortality and most of her powers. "You are free."

"Wait," Leo began, noticing that the moving truck was not here. "Where's our stuff?"

"Oh, that." Hermes said. "I already brought it to your new home."

"New home?" Calypso asked.

"Courtesy of Aphrodite." Hermes answered. "Before I left, she promised that she would make your love lives interesting. That could either be a good thing or a bad thing. Time will tell." he looked at his wristwatch. "I've got a lot of deliveries to deliver. Say goodbye, George and Martha."

"Bye, guys." George said.

"Enjoy your new life!" Martha said. With that, Hermes and the snakes vanished in a flash of light.

"So this is Camp Half-Blood?" Calypso asked Leo as she looked around.

"Yep." He answered. He turned around. "Here comes the welcoming committee."

Four people were running towards him. His friends. Piper was the first to tackle him with a hug. Jason clapped him on the back, Annabeth shook his hand and Percy grinned at them. His grin showed more guilt than happiness, maybe because he still felt the guilt of leaving Calypso.

"How did you guys know I was coming?" He asked them.

"We saw a bronze dragon and immediately knew it was you." Jason answered. "We only know of one person who can fly Festus."

Piper faced Calypso. "You're Calypso?" She offered her hand and Calypso shook it. "I'm Piper. Piper McLean."

"You're a daughter of Aphrodite?" Calypso asked.

"How did you know?" Piper replied. "Did Leo tell you?"

"You have your mother's eyes." Calypso pointed out.

Jason shook her hand next. "I'm Jason Grace. I'm a-"

"Son of Zeus?" Calypso asked.

"Actually, I'm a son of Jupiter." Jason pointed out.

"Ah, a Roman."

Annabeth approached her next. "I'm-"

"Annabeth Chase." Calypso finished for her. "Percy has told me a great deal about you."

"He has?"

"Yes. He was a sucker for you back then."

Percy interjected. "I can hear you, you know."

Percy approached and tried to put on a grin. "Hey Calypso."

"Hello, Percy." Leo could see the guilt in his eyes and the pain in her voice.

"How you been?"

"Things got better when Leo came along." Her voice perked up a bit.

A horn in the distance sounded. "Looks like that's the breakfast horn." Leo said as he rubbed his hands together. Just the thought of breakfast made him hungry. "Let's go eat, I'm starving!"

Together, the six of them headed for the mess hall.

**-END OF CHAPTER XV-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Calypso is free, the curse is broken! *pyrotechnics* She can now enjoy a new life as a mortal with her rescuer in the mortal world. See the sights, do stuff, maybe even start a shop with a certain someone... All in good time, eh?**


	16. A Tour Around Camp

_im immortal: _**make leo a shape shifter**

_ExiXIII: _**Wat**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Calypso is free and she needs a guide to the Mortal World. And we already know who her guide will be. Yep, Leo. Who else could make a better guide for Calypso than her rescuer?**

* * *

**CHAPTER XVI: "A Tour Around Camp"**

Calypso was having her first meal since she left Ogygia, and she was eating at Camp Half-Blood's dining pavilion of all places.

She discovered that the plates and goblets were magical since she sensed magic emanating from the dining implements. Turns out the plates give you what you want to eat and the goblets give you what you want to eat. She thought of home and the plate changed into a bowl that filled itself with chunky beef stew and the goblet brimmed with crisp apple cider.

To be honest, Calypso felt a bit awkward while she was eating. She was a stranger to everyone here and everyone was a stranger to her. Everyone except Leo and Percy.

"So, Calypso," Piper prompted after swallowing a spoonful of soup. "What's Ogygia like?"

"It's a phantom island." Calypso answered as she swirled her spoon around in her stew. "I've grown a beautiful garden there, though I doubt I'll see it again." She looked over to Leo, who was sitting just beside her. "I guess I'll just have to make a new one. Maybe even start a business."

"Slow down, Sunshine." Leo grinned. "I'm going to have to show you around first."

"Sunshine? You already have pet names?" Piper said that with a _how adorable_ facial expression. "What do you call Leo, then?"

"Repair boy." Calypso answered simply and Leo smirked in reply.

The others laughed. They sat there and talked and ate. Calypso really enjoyed communication, especially when it is with a group of people. When they were done eating, the dining implements were picked up by air spirits that reminded her of her invisible servants back in Ogygia. What could they be doing there now? Were they released along with her or are they still there, carrying out their routines?

Leo stood and helped Calypso to her feet. "Come on, Sunshine." He said excitedly. "I'm gonna show you around camp."

* * *

The first place Leo took her to was a large cave cut into the side of a limestone cliff. The cave was wide and vast. There were catwalks and a network of pipes on the stone ceiling, and storage cabinets and worktables as far as the eye can see lined the cavern's walls. A large orange banner hung from the far end of the cave that said "Ogygia or bust!"

"Calypso," Leo said giddily. "Welcome to Bunker 9! Birthplace of Festus and the Argo II!" As if on cue, Festus flew into the cave and curled up on the stone floor in the cavern's center.

A table on the corner stood up and sputtered steam then it ran to Leo. "Buford!" Leo said happily. "I missed ya!" Leo slid his finger on the tabletop and sighed. "You're covered in dust. Hold on, I'll go get the Lemon Pledge." The table spewed steam and creaked happily.

"Another creation of yours?" Calypso asked.

"In a way, yeah." Leo answered as he polished the dusty tabletop. Buford shuddered contentedly. "Like Festus, I just repaired him and activated him."

"I'm guessing that you spend a lot of time here."

"Yup. I've been through a lot in this place." He looked he was reminiscing. "I've even captured twelve Maenads here."

"_Twelve?_" Calypso imagined Leo subduing the nymphs with an intricate trap of his own design. "Fighting one is hard enough, but twelve?"

"Sounds like you don't believe me." Leo replied with a proud smirk. "I pinned them here with Hephaestian Netting."

"You still surprise me," Calypso paused then smirked. "Repair boy." Leo chuckled.

Leo stood. "Ready for the next stop?"

He led Calypso to a number of stops. The Pegasus Stables, which were empty, of course. Pegasi are free creatures that prefer the vast skies to the closed confines of the stables. Then he took her to a tall stone wall with lava flowing from the top and then to a nearby arena.

He showed her the cabins next. There were twenty cabins in total, one for each Olympian god and eight other cabins for minor gods. Leo explained that two of the cabins - Hera and Artemis - were just monuments because those goddesses did not have mortal children.

Leo led Calypso to the Big House. She was surprised to see a familiar figure lounging on a chair on the porch, a bottle of wine on a tabletop beside him but the drinking glass was filled with a dark brown fizzy drink that Leo called 'Diet Coke.'

"Lord Dionysus!" She called out and gained the god's attention.

"Calypso? What are you doing here?" The wine god sounded confused. "Oh, right. Your curse was broken."

"Yes. This was where Zeus sent you?"

"Sentenced to spend a century here in a camp full of demigods." A scowl crept across his face then he took a sip from his drinking glass. "To make things worse, I'm not allowed to drink wine. And I _invented _wine!" He sighed as he sloshed the liquid inside the container. "If only my curse can be broken as easily..."

_Broken as easily? _"Breaking mine cost me my immortality!" _But it was worth it._

"Good luck with that." Dionysus said dismissively.

Calypso glanced at Leo while he led her to the next stop on the tour. He had an apologetic and guilt-stricken look on his face. Dionysus's words must have hit home. "Calypso, I'm so sorry. If I only knew..."

She squeezed his hand. "You don't have to apologize for anything, my hero." She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "It was my decision."

"Yeah, but if it weren't for me coming back-"

"You needn't worry. All that matters now is that I'm here with you." Her answer seemed to lighten him up a bit.

He led her to more stops such as the canoe lake where they went canoeing - a new experience for Calypso - for about an hour. They chatted and Leo was started singing badly every now and then, which made her laugh. Leo wasn't even offended, which means he really _was_ trying to make her laugh, and he was succeeding. One of the reasons she loved him more than the past heroes.

Their next stop was one of Leo's favorite places. He took her to the Argo II. After the Second Giganomachty, the Argo II has stayed on the shores of Long Island Sound. It was not used in the Trireme fights due to being too overpowered.

"Behold," Leo said excitedly. "My greatest work, my pride and joy, my masterpiece. The spanking hot war machine, The Argo II!" He was literally jumping up and down in delight. "We used this baby to-"

"Defeat Gaea." Calypso finished for him. "I know. I watched you do it." She suddenly remembered the vision she had of Leo dying at the hands of Mimas. She decided to brush that thought aside, now that she was with Leo. But she still had nightmares of that vision.

Leo smirked. "How about I take you on a tour of the ship?"

Leo took her around the Trireme, enthusiastically explaining the various functions and mechanisms of the ship. He took her to see the panel that controlled the warship and he even showed her a demonstration. He steered the ship farther into the sea and even fired a ballista bolt on a stray drakon.

He took her deeper into the ship and showed her even more devices that she couldn't understand. He showed her the engine room with various pipes and valves and gauges that confused her. The only things she understood in his explanation were "Lemnos Fire" and "Styx Water." She knew how dangerous that can be when those two liquids mix. The Leo started babbling about something called a syncopator and she got even more confused.

Leo faltered in the middle of his lecture when she noticed that she was already getting confused. "Hey Sunshine, you look confused. Maybe I should stop explaining."

He led her out of the engine room and when they came from below decks, the sky was tinged by a light shade of orange. Leo glanced at his wristwatch. "We've got enough time for one more stop before nightfall."

He led her into the strawberry fields. The cool breeze blew across the field, carrying the scent of fresh strawberries. She knelt on the dirt and caressed a leaf of a herb and was reminded of her garden in her island. "I've always wanted to grow some strawberries."

Leo knelt on the ground beside her. "I could help you with that, once you plant your new garden."

She inspected the plant. There was one small, unripe strawberry. She sang and the strawberry reddened and grew larger. She picked the strawberry and took a bite out of it and offered the remaining half to Leo, who ate it. She felt a smile tug at the corners of her lips. "_Our_ garden."

They sat there and stared at the sunset until the first stars came out and the moon began to rise.

A horn sounded in the distance. "That must be the dinner horn." Leo said and they headed to the Mess Hall together.

* * *

When they arrived at the Mess Hall, they found two more demigods and both of them were Romans. Leo looked happy to see them. "Hey, guys!" He called out.

The two Roman demigods turned to face them. One of them looked like he was of Asian ancestry and he had a large, buff figure, and the other had chocolate-colored skin and curly hair. "Valdez!" The male demigod exclaimed happily.

"Friends of yours?" Calypso asked Leo.

"Yeah." Leo answered.

The two demigods ran up to him and the male clapped him on the back. "Hey guys." Leo said then he turned to face Calypso. "Calypso, meet Frank and Hazel." He turned to face the Romans. "Guys, this is Calypso."

"Hello, Calypso." Hazel said.

"What's Gozo like?" Frank asked and Hazel hit the back of his head.

"Gozo?" Calypso asked confusedly.

"Guys, it's called Ogygia." Leo corrected. "Why don't we talk during mealtime?" He suggested and they went to the Mess Hall and sat with Piper, Jason, Percy and Annabeth.

Calypso thought of beef tacos and on cue, a beef taco popped out from her plate. Leo had beef stew. The group ate while they talked to each other, exchanging stories of what had happened on both camps. They even updated Leo on what happened during the month he was gone. They even asked Calypso for stories. Being a three thousand year old former immortal, she had a lot of stories.

She told them the true, unabridged version of the First Titan War. Every now and then, Annabeth would cut in, posing a question and sometimes even correcting her. Calypso would just chuckle and she would correct Annabeth. "Trust me, daughter of Athena. I've witnessed those events myself." She said proudly. "I've even participated in the war!"

After they were done eating, another horn sounded. "Would you like to join us for the camp bonfire?" Leo offered. She nodded and Leo smiled a bit.

* * *

They were headed to the campfire, Leo dreading what song the Apollo kids might come up with this time. "Leo," Percy said behind him. "Can we talk?"

Leo knew that it was about Calypso, judging by the guilty look in his sea green eyes. He still felt a slight anger toward him, but since freeing Calypso, his rage has lessened. "Sure." He answered and Percy beckoned. Him to a spot far from the others.

"How'd you do it?" Percy asked. "Free Calypso, I mean."

"The gods broke her curse and Hermes brought us here." Leo answered.

"But there's something different about her. She seemed...weaker. She didn't have that same aura that I felt when I first met her."

Leo scratched the back of his head. "When the gods broke her curse, they took her immortality and most of her magic powers away."

"She's mortal now?" Percy asked in surprise. Leo nodded.

"I always thought the gods turned mortals immortal, not the other way around." Percy continued.

"They gave her a choice. She said yes." Leo said and Percy nodded in comprehension.

"Hey, you two!" Jason called out. "You coming or what?"

Percy faced him. "We should go. Calypso's probably waiting for you."

Leo took a seat beside Calypso. "Where have you been?" She asked.

"I had a chat with Percy." He answered.

She nodded. "What are we going to do tomorrow?" Calypso asked. "Are you going to take me on the 'date' you spoke of?"

Leo chuckled. "Yeah. Chiron has already allowed us to leave camp. Dionysus didn't really care."

"I can't wait for tomorrow." She said.

"We're going to have to get some sleep first."

"Where do I sleep?" She said as she yawned.

"We have a spare room in the Big House." A voice behind them answered. "You can sleep there in the meantime." They turned around. It was Chiron.

"All right, then." She said sleepily. "Will Lord Dionysus mind?"

"He's out on important business." Chiron answered. "No, he won't mind."

Calypso stood. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Yeah, I'll see you too." Leo said as Chiron led Calypso toward the Big House.

After the bonfire, Leo headed to Cabin Nine to sleep. His bed was as he had left it. His half-siblings greeted him as he headed toward his bed. _It's going to be a big day tomorrow. _He thought to himself as he lay on his bed and drifted to sleep.

**-END OF CHAPTER XVI-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Once again, HAPPY NEW YEAR! Before I go on, I'd like to offer a few words on a lost friend. Rest in Peace, 2013. (2013-2013) MOVING ON!**

**Calypso's first date with Leo! Are you excited? Because I am.**

**I'll be working on a new fic, so my update schedule might change. Come to think of it, I never **_**had **_**an update schedule in the first place. Huh. Anyways, I'll update when I can, like I always did.**


	17. A New World

_ExiXIII: _**DOUBLE WORK FOR ME! *confetti* *exasperation***

**Like I said, I'm working on Tartarus Rising, so updates might come slower, but not Internet Explorer slow.**

**Anyways, here we are, Leo has freed calypso, and as promised, he will show her the mortal world, which she hadn't seen for three thousand years. **

* * *

**CHAPTER XVII: "A New World"**

Calypso woke up the same time she always did.

The sunlight was filtering through the window blinds, making stripe patterns on the walls. Someone knocked on the door. She sat up.

"Calypso, you there?" Leo asked as he knocked. He opened the door ajar and peeked into the room. "Good morning, Sunshine." He grinned. "Come on, breakfast will start soon."

She got out of bed and put on the slippers Chiron had provided for her. "It is dangerous to walk barefoot around here," The centaur had warned her. "You could step on a weapon or a shard of glass or if your near the Ares Cabin, a landmine."

"Hold on, I'll just braid my hair." She answered then sat down in front of a mirror.

"No, let me help." Leo offered then stood behind her and took her ponytail.

Calypso giggled. "No, you separate the ponytail into two first."

"Like this?" Leo asked as he showed her the ponytail.

"Yes. Now, hold the two strands with your hand but keep them separated."

"Done."

"Now, take a thin piece from the right strand and cross it over the left."

Leo looked confused. "Why don't I do it myself?" Calypso offered.

"No, I've got this." Leo said stubbornly.

"Looks like you're having difficulty."

He looked up from her ponytail. "I've faced down a giant crab, a sea serpent, an earth goddess and a Manticore. I've flown miles over the Atlantic and the Mediterranean and nearly got myself killed." Leo boasted. "I can do a simple braid." His gaze returned to his task at hand. "As soon as I undo this knot."

"You might set my hair on fire." Calypso said jokingly but she knew he'd never do that.

"No, I won't." Leo answered. "Almost done and..." He looked up from the hair. "How do I secure this?"

"With this." She gave him a piece of golden cloth that he tied on her braid to secure it. "You do an okay braid."

Leo smirked. "Let's get to the mess hall."

She followed Leo downstairs and out of the Big House. He led her across camp to the dining pavilion. When they arrived, there were already some demigods - she guessed they were counselors, since they always wake first - in the mess hall.

Leo's friends were seated at at a table together. Annabeth spotted them first. "Leo, Calypso!" She beckoned for them and invited them to sit. "Join us, we were just about to start breakfast."

They sat beside each other on the same table as the air spirits flew around, setting plates and goblets. They worked quickly and efficiently, putting dining implements where they are supposed to be put. They reminded her of her invisible servants.

"Chiron told us you two were going out of camp." Piper said then raised an eyebrow. "What do you two have planned?" She asked with a sly smile on her face.

Leo squeezed her hand. "We're going around town, I'll be showing her the modern world."

"So basically, you're going to take her out on a date?" Jason asked him. "You lucky bastard, you!" Piper elbowed his stomach.

"Make sure you're well-armed." Percy warned. "There could still be some monsters roaming the mortal world."

The breakfast horn sounded. That signified the start of the day. Some of the counselors went back to their cabins to get their half-siblings. Soon, the mess hall was full of people and food began to pop out of the plates. Some demigods went near the brazier at the far end of the pavilion and threw in an offering. Some threw in a pack of candies or a loaf of bread or a pancake.

"Where are you taking her?" Jason asked.

"If I tell you, the surprise will be ruined for her." Leo answered with a smirk.

There, they sat, ate and talked until they were done eating. The air spirits whisked. The used utensils away for cleaning and Leo stood up and took her hand. "Come on, Sunshine." He grinned. "I've got an entire world to show you."

* * *

They left the camp and headed to the city. The new sights amazed her. Lights that needed no fire, metal chariots that require no horses, screens with moving images and towers that stool tall and high. It's a surprise. That Zeus didn't strike these towers down. But the saddest part about the city is that there were almost no trees and the air stank of smoke. How could the mortals live like this?

"You see that tall one over there?" He said as he pointed at one of the tallest towers. He called it the 'Empire State Building'. "That's where Olympus is now."

"Olympus is here?" Calypso asked.

"Yup." Leo faced her. "So, where do you want to go first?"

She thought about this for a moment. "Take me to a movie you speak of."

Leo led her to a theater and bought her 'popcorn'. The movie was a wonder. Mortal technology has allowed them to manipulate light to create moving images on flat screens. What's more is that the mortals have created special glasses that allow a flat image to pop out, like it was real. This effect was so real that she was about to draw her dagger until Leo assured her that it was not real. No wonder the mortals have become blind, they dismissed these legends as nothing but 'myth'.

A question formed in her mind. "Mortals have no use of plays anymore?" She asked her rescuer.

"They still do plays." Leo answered. "But there aren't much plays today, because of movies and all.

They sat there and watched the movie, Leo's hand gently stopping hers every time she reaches for her dagger. The '3-D' effect generated by the glasses was very convincing, but what's even more amazing is that these glasses didn't use magic. She didn't sense the slightest hint of magic anywhere in the theater.

When the movie was done, Leo led her out off the theater and asked her the same question. "What do you want to do next?"

She thought about this for a moment. There are so many things she wanted to see, so many things she wanted to do. She can't really decide since she was a stranger to all these new experiences and. She didn't know what to do or where to go. "How about you take me somewhere?" She said. "Surprise me."

Leo took her around the city, showing her the various sights and attractions. He took her to an arcade where he showed her what a 'video game' is. She won all the time, so she was sure that Leo was letting her win.

After that, he took her to a local fast food joint, where she ate her first 'hamburger'. It was a strange, yet delicious way of consuming meat and bread, which they never thought of back in Ancient Greece. She also ate 'French Fries', yet another new way of consuming potatoes.

Next, he took her to a 'carnival' full of rides and attractions. "What's that?" She asked as she pointed at a long, winding metallic road with a carriage full of screaming passengers.

"Oh, that?" Leo answered. "That's a roller coaster."

"Is it some sort of torture device?"

Leo laughed. "Hephaestus, no! It's a ride, for the thrill of people."

"Mortals risk their lives for fun?"

"What? No! That's completely safe." He took her hand and led her to the 'roller coaster'. "Come on!" He smirked. "Is the daughter of Atlas scared of a carnival ride?"

"What? I most certainly am _not _scared!"

"Then come on!"

They reached the roller coaster and Leo ushered her into one of the carriages. He sat beside her and fastened a seat belt around his waist. She did the same. The metal bars in front of them lowered automatically and Leo told her to hang on.

The carriage lurched forward and started moving slowly upward and upward, until they were high above the amusement park. "Heh, this isn't so bad." She said proudly. She expected the ride to be more thrilling. The carriage reached the highest peak. "I've seen-" The carriage descended. She screamed and Leo laughed.

The carriage moved around the loops and twists of the metal rail, everything around them zipping quickly past them in a blur, which made her dizzy. The thrill of the ride and the roar of the wind against her ears made her feel excited and scared at the same time, even more so than the moment she rode on Festus's back.

When the ride slowed to a stop, they lurched forward from the inertia. Leo helped her off the carriage. She was still disoriented and she could still feel adrenaline rushing through her veins. "That. Was. _FUN!_"

"Whoa, Sunshine. Don't jump up and down. You might lose your lunch."

Now that he had mentioned it, she began to feel dizzy and might throw up at any moment. She stopped jumping for a while until her nausea settled.

He took her around the carnival for a little longer, taking her on more rides or getting her a token, like a small plush teddy bear that he had won from a game.

Soon, night fell and lights began to pop up. This amount of lighting, Calypso expected the place to burn, but didn't. Leo explained something about a lightbulb and electricity and Benjamin Franklin, who Annabeth said was a son of Athena.

For one last stop, Leo took her to a public park. The street lamps illuminated some areas the park with white and yellow light, giving the place a tranquil ambience. This seemed to be the only area where plants were allowed to grow. Trees dotted the landscape and there was a pond nearby. The sounds of crickets, the fireflies and the small amount of mortals added to the park's calm and peaceful atmosphere.

"So this is what thee mortal world is like." Calypso said wistfully as she gazed at the full moon and the constellations.

"I know, pretty cool huh?" Leo answered giddily.

"Well, you mortals do have your moments." She answered as she pondered on something, sipping on the coffee that Leo had purchased for her a few moments ago before going to the park. "A lot has changed since the gods have passed my sentence."

A dove swam on the pond near them. The symbol of Aphrodite. A thought struck her. "Leo, where did Hermes say he brought our belongings?"

Leo reached for something in his pocket and pulled out a wallet. He pulled out a white card on it with an address written in cursive, and in the love goddess's handwriting no less. "I found this in my wallet when I bought you that burger." He turned over the card in his hands. "Hermes said that it was here."

"What could she be planning?" Calypso mused.

"I don't know." Leo. Answered and shrugged. "Percy said that she would make his love life with Annabeth interesting, and they fell into Tartarus. They-" He faltered then looked at her. "I'm so sorry I-"

"What?" Calypso smirked. "I've gotten over Percy, trust me."

"Oh." He stood. "In that case, let's get to this address." He helped Calypso to her feet and walked out of the park to hail a 'cab' to get to the address the card told them to.

**-END OF CHAPTER XVII-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Sorry about the quotation marks on such common words, it's just that I'm trying to tell the story based on Calypso's perspective on the mortal world. So if you see quotation marks on the word 'hamburger', it's because we see it in Calypso's eyes.**

**Also, sorry if this was a bit of a bad chapter, it's just that I haven't even been on a date yet. *miserably bangs head against wall* So I don't know how a date usually goes. Hehe.**


	18. Moving

_QuasWexExort: _**can u do a leyna fic**

_ExiXIII: _**I'm not really much of a leyna shipper, so, no.**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**Sorry for that six-day-long loss of activity. I got a massive case of writer's block then there was the matter of school so I may have had difficulty making this one.**

* * *

**CHAPTER XVIII: "Moving"**

The cab dropped them off near Long Island Sound, about ten minutes away from Camp Half-Blood if they walked. Leo decided that if they were going to need to rest. He also has some of his stuff to get from the Bunker.

By the time they got to camp, bonfire has already started. The Apollo song leader was singing the hits of Michael Jackson and almost everyone was singing along. What's more is that everyone was in full armor, so they must have played capture the flag while they were away. Even the Huntresses if Artemis were there.

They took their seats beside their friends. All of them were there: Jason, Piper, Percy, Annabeth, Frank, Hazel and even Reyna. Judging by her outfit, which consisted of a bronze chestplate and her usual purple SPQR shirt, she must have played too.

"You just missed the game!" Jason said with a wide grin and beads of sweat on his face. "We pulled some sort of ambush tactic with the Hecate cabin. Whenever the Athena and Hecate cabins are together, they always win! It's been like that for the past year and-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait." Leo cut him off. "The past year? I've been gone for a _year?_ I've been in Ogygia for, like, a _month!_"

"Time is not the same in Ogygia, remember?" Calypso pointed out.

"I've got a lot of catching up to do." He replied.

"Not much has happened since we defeated Gaea last year." Percy said.

"Most of us are leaving camp to go to college." Annabeth said.

"What about you two?" Piper asked. "What do you plan to do?"

Leo took the card out of his pocket and turned it over in his hands. "What's that?" Piper asked as she pointed at the card.

"An address your mom gave us." He answered, his gaze still on the intricate lettering on the card. "She said we'll find something good there."

"Mom's been sponsoring you the whole time?" Piper replied with surprise on her face.

"Yeah, we leave tomorrow."

"What a coincidence." Annabeth said that as if it were a conspiracy. "We leave tomorrow too. Chiron's already given us permission to go and live out our lives. If we survive past twenty."

"Good to know." Percy said with sarcasm.

The song leader was now singing 'Beat It'. "What was the strategy this time?" Leo asked to spark a conversation.

Annabeth was the one who answered, her voice showing her enthusiasm. "It was an ambush strategy. We used the illusions of the Hecate Cabin to make a trap for some unsuspecting suckers and..." She babbled on, describing the strategy and the events of tonight's game in detail. Part of Leo wished he had joined tonight's capture the flag, but the other, bigger part of him was glad that he spent an entire day with Calypso.

Te bonfire ended after some more singing and a Simon Says showdown between the Demeter and the Nike cabin. The campers went back to their respective cabins. Calypso bid Leo good night as she headed for the Big House. Leo himself went to Bunker 9 to pack what few things he has.

He packed his tool belt, his Archimedes Sphere, some blueprints and even tried to disassemble Buford.

"Com on, Buford!" Leo exclaimed as he chased Buford the Winder Table across Bunker 9. "Do you want to come with us, or what?"

_Hiss, puff!_

"Then just let me disassemble you for a while, to make you easier to transport."

_Clank, creak, hiss!_

"No, I won't destroy you!"

_Puff, squeak whir!_

"What was that? I'll wash that communicator of yours with Windex!"

Buford ran faster in response. _Puff, tick, clank!_

Leo tackled the table and pinned it to the ground. "Gotcha!" Buford squealed in protest as he reached for the off switch. He flipped the switch and Buford stopped and fell silent. Leo took a wrench from his tool belt and started removing its legs and putting it into a box.

He was done packing and he was ready to leave the next day. He leaned against a sleeping Festus, closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

He woke up the next morning and found Calypso standing over him, her caramel-colored hair tied in a better braid over her shoulder, smelling of cinnamon. "Good morning, repair boy." She said with a bright smile, her brown eyes gleaming with excitement and mischief. She leaned over and kissed him, which was enough to snap him out of his sleepy state.

She helped him up. She still retained a tiny bit of her godly strength, which made her a bit stronger than the average mortal girl while retaining her figure. She was wearing a fresh red shirt, new denim jeans and a pair of brown sandals. "Your friends want to say goodbye." She said as she walked out of the cavern.

"Come on, Festus." Leo said as he slung his backpack over his shoulder. Festus got up and followed him out of the cave.

Leo found his friends saying goodbye to each other, giving each other hugs and brofists and high-fives. "Valdez!" Coach Hedge exclaimed with a grin as he turned around. Everyone turned to face him.

He and Festus ran up to them. Piper tackled hum with a long hug. "Okay, okay, beauty queen. Callie's gonna get jealous."

Piper let go and Calypso punched his arm. "Don't call me that."

Jason gave him a manly bro hug. "We're gonna miss you, man."

"Yeah, I'm gonna miss all you guys too."

They all went to Leo and clapped him on the back or hugged him. THey even said goodbye to Festus, who playfully snorted steam at the entire group. They all went into a group hug and Festus even joined in by nudging them all with his snout.

"Why don't we meet here again during the holidays or breaks?" Hazel suggested which gained a yes from the entire group.

Leo hadn't seen these guys in a month, or a year, in their case. He wished that it couldn't end so soon, but they were going off to college and Leo was going to an address the goddess of love sent them.

Leo was about t mount Festus when he found Calypso already on the dragon. "What are you doing there, Sunshine?" He called out.

"This time, I'm driving!" She said proudly.

"You don't even know how!"

"Festus taught me."

_Creak, squeak, whir._ Festus agreed. Calypso stuck her tongue out.

"Okay, okay, fine." Leo said then mounted the dragon, sitting behind Calypso. "You better not get us crashed!"

Calypso hooted and the dragon took flight. Leo could see his friends below them, waving their hands in goodbye. Festus turned and headed for the destination written on the card.

* * *

The mortals didn't even suspect a thing; none of them even looked up and noticed the bronze dragon automaton flying directly over their heads. Calypso remembered a time when people would run screaming and pointing when a creature such as Festus landed nearby.

"Let's see your landing skills." Leo said in challenge, a smirk creeping across his face. He pointed at a house below them. "Right there."

She landed Festus on the backyard behind a house. The Hermes Express delivery truck was visible, so they must be at the right place. The house was a simple home enough for two.

They got off Festus's back. The lawn and the house were empty, so they still have some moving in to do. "All right," Leo prompted, rubbing his hands. "Let's get moving."

What they had to unpack first was the furniture, and there wasn't much. They had to take out and reassemble the broken-down dining table and chairs. Leo reassembled his mechanical table and it sputtered to life. It made a series of unhappy creaking and hissing noises as it tried to kick Leo with its mechanical legs.

"All right, I'm sorry!" Leo said in surrender and Buford stopped. "You said you wanted to come!"

Seeing a table try to beat up her boyfriend was a hilarious sight to behold. A couple of scenarios went through her mind that were about what a demigod would look like after being conquered by a piece of furniture. She laughed and Leo's head turned to her.

"What?" Leo asked.

"Oh, nothing." She replied. "Could you get the jars of herbs for me?"

"Buford!" Leo said and the table immediately ran to the delivery truck. It came back with clay jars of dried herbs and spices on its tabletop. She took the containers and arranged them on the counter and the cupboards the way they were arranged back in her cave in Ogygia.

Leo unpacked the box containing the parts of her loom. She could have had just asked someone to make her a new loom, but this one had sentimental value. He positioned it in the living room.

She asked Buford to retrieve the potted ferns from the truck. The table returned and did as she had asked and she hang the pots of plants from the ceiling. She even placed some other potted plants around the house to brighten it up.

Leo installed the fountain, which she didn't even know he had brought, in the backyard. The bronze satyrs started spewing water the way they were supposed to and it reminded her a lot of home.

They had to unpack everything else. The bed racks, the mattresses, the bed sheets, their clothes, the plates, goblets and the silverware. They have prepared everything. All that was left now was the garden.

The sun was still high in the sky, which meant they still had a lot of time, then she could plant the moonlace at night. Leo constructed a tool shed as Calypso used her trowel to dig holes in the backyard so she can replant the plants from Ogygia.

The backyard was filled with herbs, bushes and some tree saplings which she had imported from Ogygia. The front yard was decorated by flowerbeds and rows of ornate flowers. It resembled her garden in some ways; the only difference now was that it was smaller. By the time they were done, the sun was already setting.

Buford the table came up to them with two glasses of crisp apple cider on its tabletop. They took the glasses and took a sip. The sound of the fountain spewing water, the aroma that wafted from the flora in their garden and even Buford reminded her a lot of Ogygia, which meant that they did a good job of moving in.

"What do we do now?" She asked Leo, who was sitting beside her.

"Get something to eat?" His eyes glinted excitedly. "I'm starving."

"I could have cooked something if only there was a fire pit around here."

"Fire pit? There's a stove right there. Why-" He stopped as if he just realized something. "Oh, right. Here, lemme show you."

He went to the kitchen and turned a knob on a device and fire came from its top. She had never seen man make fire so easily and effortlessly. "Okay, now I can probably cook up some stew."

Buford reminded her a lot of her invisible servants because it always answers to her or Leo's whim, given that he is polished periodically. Buford brought the bowls of stew and goblets of cider to the dining table. They took their seats and dug into the meal with.

"It's strange..." She mused after she swallowed a spoonful of stew. "I've never felt this hungry before."

"Maybe because you're getting used to being a mortal?" He answered.

"Maybe," she replied as she swirled her spoon in her bowl of stew. "Do I look any different?"

He looked up from his food and regarded her for a while. "Well, no." He grinned. "You still look beautiful."

They finished their meal and went through their nightly routine before going to bed. There was only one bedchamber in the entire house with their two separate beds. Leo's was still a fire dampening bed, just in case he gets another of his nocturnal outbursts.

"Good night, Calypso." Leo said then he turned off the lamp on the table between their beds.

"Good night, Leo." She said and she closed her eyes. Soon after, she was asleep.

**-END OF CHAPTER XVIII-**

* * *

_ExiXIII: _**I don't know when I can update given the amount of school-related work that must be done considering the fact that graduation is near (at least here where I am) but I'll try to update soon.**


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